{"id":7133,"date":"2013-04-29T10:22:36","date_gmt":"2013-04-29T15:22:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/news\/?p=7133"},"modified":"2015-11-12T08:01:41","modified_gmt":"2015-11-12T14:01:41","slug":"mitchell-rawford","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/news\/mitchell-rawford\/","title":{"rendered":"He\u2019s all geared up for automotive manufacturing"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
\n
Mitchell Crawford<\/dt>\n
Degree:<\/strong> BS Mechanical Engineering, College of Engineering & Applied Science<\/dd>\n
Hometown:<\/strong> Prairie du Sac, Wis.<\/dd>\n
It\u2019s a fact:<\/strong> He collects highway signs \u2013 what else?<\/dd>\n<\/dl>\n<\/div>\n

When it comes to automobiles, don\u2019t get Mitchell Crawford started \u2013 unless you\u2019re prepared for a long discussion. His childhood fascination with cars steered him toward a degree in mechanical engineering, and it was a particular car he worked on at UWM that ultimately helped him land a job in the automotive field.<\/p>\n

Crawford is in an enviable position. Despite tough economic times, he has been a salaried engineer working nearly full-time at Modine Manufacturing in Racine since January. Among Modine\u2019s products are thermal management components that are used in automotive applications.<\/p>\n

Crawford has worked four internships, called co-ops, with Modine. This included one term in Tennessee, where he worked at one of their plants to gain manufacturing experience. \u201cSo after all that, they wanted me and it was mutual,\u201d he says. \u201cI did not look anywhere else.\u201d<\/p>\n

From his hometown near Madison, Crawford settled on UWM after visiting his cousin who was enrolled and living in the residence halls. Although his parents are University of Wisconsin-Madison alumni, Crawford was impressed with the tight knit community at Sandburg, and decided then to pass up Madison in favor of coming to the larger city.<\/p>\n

A drive to improve<\/strong><\/p>\n

He immediately joined the student chapter of the Society of Automotive Engineers<\/a> (SAE), a group dedicated to designing, building and racing an off-road \u201cBaja\u201d car. Each year, universities from around the world race these vehicles in a competition sponsored by SAE.<\/p>\n

But when Crawford began, the UWM Baja car had seen better days. The car \u2013 and the team\u2019s chances for being competitive \u2013 was hindered by a decade of repairs and upgrades from only recycled pieces. He recalled how the front suspension arms had been made out of table legs because that was all previous student engineers had to use.<\/p>\n

The group took stock of what it would need to bring their car to the next performance level.<\/p>\n

\u201cSAE was the icebreaker for me in the college. I met so many people,\u201d says Crawford. \u201cMy aim was to build up the inventory of available resources, which involved fund-raising. For a while it was like Christmas every week when we were receiving new parts and tools.\u201d<\/p>\n

In his two years in SAE, the group had amassed $30,000 worth of tools and materials, enough to build an all-new car, he says. And in the process, Crawford made some valuable contacts, one of which recommended him for a co-op at Modine.<\/p>\n

Old-school done right<\/strong><\/p>\n

The experience has left him with some opinions on the importance of the manufacturing sector. \u201cI\u2019ve come to see how manufacturing brings more robust economic growth to an area,\u201d he says. \u201cIt\u2019s truly making money by making things. It could drive the U.S. forward, but automation is necessary in order to compete in the global market.\u201d<\/p>\n

Modine\u2019s product-testing facility particularly impressed Crawford. \u201cWe can simulate the radiator module from a dump truck traveling off road, down to each pothole and bump,\u201d he says. \u201cOur climatic wind tunnel can simulate a car driving up to 150 MPH with an air temperature of -20 F to 130 F. It\u2019s an extremely efficient way to test a product while controlling the elements.\u201d<\/p>\n

The search for efficiency was a theme that also permeated Crawford\u2019s study abroad experience in Germany, where he and his classmates studied renewable energy.<\/p>\n

Before leaving the country, Crawford made time for his first love. He visited the Autostadt (literally \u201ccar city\u201d), a museum of automobiles that is adjacent to the Volkswagen factory in Wolfsburg.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere was every car that had represented a milestone, or advancement in the industry. I had an opportunity to check them out up-close, some of which cannot be seen anywhere else in the world.\u201d<\/p>\n

Having earned his degree and started his professional life, what\u2019s Crawford\u2019s next goal? It just may be to replace his silver Impreza with a faster vehicle.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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