Penn College students team with Lycoming Engines for project

WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. – Lycoming Engines recently employed the talents of Pennsylvania College of Technology students for a project that will have lasting benefits for the renowned company.

At the request of Lycoming, welding students – as part of a class project – fabricated an access platform designed by Tyler J. Gustafson, of Warren, majoring in engineering design technology. The aluminum structure will span between two new Okuma LU-45 twin-turret lathes, which are intended to help expand Lycoming’s internal cylinder barrel manufacturing capacity.

A Corporate Tomorrow Maker, Lycoming manufactures piston engines that power more than half of the world’s general aviation fleet, both rotary and fixed-wing.

“The lathes are much larger than any other lathes currently utilized at Lycoming, which presented us with a work-loading challenge that we have never had to overcome before. We needed to come up with a way to safely get the operator access to the internals of the machines for repetitive machine-tending activities,” explained Tyler McCoy, senior project manager for Lycoming Engines.

McCoy – recipient of two Penn College degrees: a bachelor’s in manufacturing engineering technology (2016) and an associate in civil engineering technology (2014) – turned to his alma mater for assistance. He didn’t have to look far.

Since 2022, Gustafson has worked at Lycoming as an industrial engineer co-op student. 

“He clearly has a passion for design work, so when the challenge of installing our two new twin-turret lathes presented itself, I challenged him to come up with a solution,” McCoy said.

Gustafson received the assignment in December. Using AutoDesk Inventor – computer-aided design modeling software he learned at Penn College – the Dean’s List student completed the initial design in January. Following a few tweaks, he presented the final proposal in February: a platform that allows an operator to walk back and forth between the lathes in a safe manner.

“As expected, he turned around a great design that met all the requirements,” McCoy said.

But it wasn’t easy. Gustafson had to redesign the original bridge portion of the platform.

“When we ran our first article parts on the machine and did tool changes, we noticed that the turret on the Okuma would collide with the initial bridge design,” Gustafson said. “Given this, I had to come up with a bridge that could fold in half, still allowing the operator to step in and out of the machine for part reloading and tool changes. Within the redesign, I had to basically cut the bridge in half to allow for flexibility while also maintaining structural integrity.”

Gustafson ensured structural integrity by employing finite element analysis and dynamic simulation, software he’s used at Penn College. Those tools allowed him to assess how the bridge would react under real-world conditions and determine the required force to lift the bridge.

“It was cool to see something that I learned in the classroom, just this past year, be applied in industry so quick,” said Gustafson, who will begin working full time for Lycoming following his May graduation.

Split into four sections for easy maintenance, the platform measures 190 square feet and stands 16 inches off the ground.

“Tyler’s design covers all the bases,” McCoy said. “It’s designed to improve safety; designed to meet the form, fit, function and cost requirements; designed for ease of maintenance; and designed for manufacturability.”

“I am very grateful for this opportunity. I have learned a lot throughout this project,” Gustafson said. “This is the first time to design something this large that is being fabricated. I was able to use the materials I learned in the classroom and apply them out in industry. I am excited to see the platform implemented and used on the shop floor.”

About 40 students enrolled in three sections of the Welding Blueprint & Layout II course spent several weeks manufacturing the platform. Led by Michael R. Allen, instructor of welding and co-department head, the students prepped all materials, cut the aluminum and fabricated the platform in the college’s 55,000-square-foot lab.

“We did a weld-off to determine which students would do the welding,” Allen said. “We then assigned four welders to each section of the platform. The other students focused on fitters and other prep work.”

The weld-off tested the students’ proficiency with both tungsten arc welding (TIG) and metal inert gas welding (MIG), the two processes used for the project.

Allen selected Eric R. Hill, a welding & fabrication engineering technology student from Lemont, to weld beams together for one section of the platform. Hill employed TIG welding to fill gaps and join the beams.

“I am very grateful that Penn College is able to give these types of opportunities and experiences to our classes,” Hill said. “I feel the students are more engaged when the project is being done for a company. Doing projects like this makes me more prepared for the workplace. I was able to build on skills such as reading blueprints, communication and problem-solving.”

Allen smiled when asked to assess the quality of his students’ work. “I’m happy as heck with it,” he said. “The fact that Lycoming Engines came to us to fabricate the platform, rather than doing it themselves or contracting with a vendor, speaks volumes about our welding program.”

“This project clearly reflects the synergy between academic departments at Penn College and between the school and industry,” added Bradley M. Webb, dean of engineering technologies. “We are very proud of our students’ efforts to provide a solution – in both design and fabrication – for a valued cooperate partner such as Lycoming Engines.”

Over 30% of Lycoming Engines’ employees are Penn College graduates.
“Lycoming couldn’t be happier with Penn College,” McCoy said. “We look forward to more opportunities like this in the future.”

For more information on engineering design, welding and other degrees offered by Penn College’s School of Engineering Technologies, call 570-327-4520 or visit www.pct.edu/et.  

Penn College is a national leader in applied technology education. Visit www.pct.edu, email admissions@pct.edu or call toll-free 800-367-9222.