- Major: Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering
- Company: Flint Group
- Graduation Year: May 2022
- E-mail: escanlan@vols.utk.edu
Profile
Kingsport, TN
I did my three co-op rotations with Flint Group in Asheville, North Carolina where I worked on Printing Products: inks, and offset printing solutions. I participated primarily in the Technology or R&D department working on several projects in the lab and then working to make them processes in production.
I decided to co-op because I thought it would be the best way to gain practical experience in the workplace and also help me to decide what I wanted to do in the future; i.e. research, manufacturing, etc.
I worked on developing a primer coat to bond PET to rubber in order to develop a new offset printing solution product. I was able to help create it in a lab in my first time, to have it actually be a process and sold by my final term. My work actually creating revenue for the plant was an achievement I was proud. The co-op in which I participated has benefited me greatly both academically and professionally. Academically, it allowed me to see many of the things I had learned and appreciate them further, and then recognize things from my co-op in classes I took afterwards. Professionally, I feel like being around professional engineers really allowed me to grasp how to be an engineer in the workplace and what everyday life will consist of.
I think co-op would be one of, if not the best, decisions you can make in college in order to prepare yourself for the future.
I am a huge sports fan, I enjoy watching or playing almost any kind of sport there is with my friends.
Pro Tip: Whatever you go do or wherever you go to for a co-op there is something there that can be learned to make it well worth your while.
