Post 9: Feb 3 & 4,
Description of my Workplace.
Post 7: Jan 14,
How my WLE project is going
I spoke with my mentor about my project and he said it would totally work for me and it would benefit the company in some way. Basically, I am really only able to create a flow chart for the process because everything else that is being done at the company is being done by people who are certified and are trained to do them professionally - which means I'm out of the loop to really help the company work on any projects that they are doing right now. The main things that I have to do for this project is just take pictures and a little bit of notes on the process of how the company makes afterburner parts, and I'm planning on doing that next friday. And I am up to date on my hours, so i'm good.
Post 5: Dec 17,
Hours and Project
Today, I helped Tony over in the inspection department of the shop. I performed the processing part of the inspection process, "the grunt work of the inspection process" Tony said. I had to dip the parts into a vat of a chemical called penetrant, which glows underneath a black light - kind of like a highlighter - and the penetrant seaps into and cracks in the part, then I had to wash of any excess penetrant with a pressure washer and a cleaner, and finally I placed the parts into a dryers so that Tony could look at them under the black light. Inspection is the most important part of the whole manufacturing process because it is Tony - or whoever is inspecting the parts at that time - who certifies the parts and gives the ok to ship them out. I accomplished the task of stocking up tony's inventory for what he needed to do for his inspection part - where he looks at the part and trys to find any cracks, dents, holes, etc. The way he is able to see the cracks is by inspecting the parts underneath a black light, which illuminates any cracks or inperfections. I believe that I am on track with my hours, but I am going to my WLE on Thursday, Dec. 23 just to get ahead. As of right now, I don't exactly have an essential question or thesis, because my project doesn't really call for it; my project is basically to just create a "flow chart" (<- Mrs. Galvan) that shows the process to make the parts at Associated Aerospace Activities, Inc. - basically what it starts out as, to what it ends up as, and all the steps in between.
Post 4: Dec 10,
Leadership Skills
The three main Leadership Skills that I am using in my internship are Productive Collaboration, Effective Project Management, and Effective and Persuassive Communication. I have to work well with whom ever I am working with, where it be Tony over in inspection, to Jim over in Shipping and Recieving. I also have to bge on top of whatevfer task I am assigned so that I can finish it quickly andgive whatever information it reveals to the person that assigned me the job. I aslo have to feel comfortable with those with whom I am working, not being shy to speak up, ask questions, or transfer any messages that need to be passed from co-worker to co-worker.
Post 3: Dec 4
Associated Aerospace Activities, Inc. mainly services the US Government - particularly the Navy and Air Force - but also other governments in other countries - I'm not allowed to state which ones because its against the law I'm pretty sure - but all in all, many people, governments, private corporations, etc. benefit from AAAI's existence. "The bread and butter" - as my mentor calls it - of AAAI is the afterburners that they make for F-16s and B1 Bombers (refer to the picture). Also, the main strength that I see at AAAI is the small, tight-nit family atmosphere that looms around the shop; everyone knows one another, and they're always saying hi and asking how everything is going; it's a really nice, relaxing place to work - especially for how important and dangerous the work is (Machining). However, according to my mentor, and some of the co-workers, they feel that the main set-back they always seem to face are the frequent lay-offs that occur during the process of making the parts. The lay-offs occur because the US Government, whom they usually do business with, do not pay the money owed for the parts, until all of them are completed and turned over to the government. Other than the lay-offs that happen, everyone says that they love working at Associated Aerospace Activities, Inc.
Post 2: Nov 11
Today was my first day at my internship, but unfortunately it wasn't very eventful. All I was doing was cleaning the shop floor, taking out the garbage, and walking around watching and asking people questions. Although I didn't do much, I still found it interesting to talk to the people who work there because I got to know them a little better, for instance, Gary is a machine worker and he has been working at Associated Aerospace Activities Inc. for like 45 years!
Post 1: Oct 29
I did not go to may internship because my mentor was not there and he told me not to come in without him being there - for safety reasons. Instead, I stayed home and took a nice relaxing day off, looking up colleges outside of California that I might want to go to, and doing homework.
Intro Post: How I got my WLE: Oct 26
I got my internship through a fairly easy process. My sister's friend's dad is actually my mentor and our families know each other really well, my mom once mentioned to my mentor - his name is Brad Wadsworth - that Impact was running an WLE program that provided students with an unpaid internship opportunity to get a sense of the real working world. I personally didn't even know that my mom had told Brad about this until like two or three weeks ago. So I called him up, and turns out he is the production manager down at Associated Aerospace Activities, Incorporated - which is pretty cool just by how the name sounds - and once he knew it was me, he simply said, "Is it time now, are you coming in finally for the internship thing?". At first I was baffle that he was pretty much already expecting me and that he was soo eager to get me down there to work with him. So we were talking for a bit and I explained the whole WLE process and briefly what he is supposed to do, and what I am supposed to do, and the final thing he said was to show up on Job Shadow Day and bring my résumé with me and he said that I'll be all good. So I went there on Job Shadow Day and Brad gave me the walk through of the entire workshop and went over what I may be able to do and who I will most likely be working with when he may or may not be there - basically just sweeping and helping with analyzing the finished products to see if there are any flaws in them and maybe playing with a few presses, but nothing too dangerous because he would be liable.
^^ 12TH GRADE YEAR ^^
VV 11TH GRADE YEAR VV
Post 16: May 5
Today is my last "official day" of being an intern here at Marshall/Lee Inc. Architects, and I have been exposed to soo much information over the past three months. I have met wonderful people who are really motivated and upbeat about their job - and boy are they smart! My mentor, his boss, and a fellow co-worker there are all Berkley graduates, and there is one woman whom I just met today, Mina, she graduated from a college down in Argentina. All of the people that work at the firm are very open and helpful for any questions that I had throughout this experience. It was a hard day today for me to wake up, plus my alarm clock broke, so I ended up arriving at the firm at around 8:45/9:00. My mentor was okay with it when I explained myself, but he had to leave about five minutes after I left. So i was just doing the very last touches on my project that needed to be done in DataCAD, and for the rest of the day I was just sketching out a visual of what the remodeled Kitchen & Family Room would look like, and reading One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest. I thanked all the the people that were working that day for all their help and support, and left the letter to my mentor on his desk. I left at about 3:00.
Post 15: April 28
Today I arrived at my internship at around 8:25 - 8:30. This morning was a little crazy. I got to the BART Station and got on the train, but it took me like forty-five minutes to get to Powell Station because there was some delays due to the rain. Also, once I got to the Powell Station, I believe someone had a heart attack - or something crazy - but there was a ton of paramedics and policeman (I don't see why, there was only one person). And just as I got there they were loading her up the escalator and causing all kinds of traffic. But anyways, I got to my internship pretty much on time and I was just working on my project the whole time. I had to completely re-draw my Floor Plan because it turns out that the walls were not the right size - so that took a lot of time. And now i have just one last thing to do - i have to sketch up the proposed look of my clients (family members') future kitchen/dining room. I left my internship at 3:30. So that was my day, whew only one more blog to go - just kidding.
Post 14: April 14
Today I arrived at my internship at 8:15. The whole day i was revising my project on DataCAD, because my mentor had a few important tips that helped me make my project look more like a floor plan and also things that needed to be added to my drawing to make it "legal" - figuratively speaking of course. He and I discussed different ideas that I could use to remodel my room, and also ideas I could convey to my clients (family members). I also interviewed my mentor and he explained that as an architect, one must be able to juggle at least three or four projects at a time. He, at this point in time, is working on about five or six projects which are in various different places. Today was very productive because my mentor said that I did very well and that I didn't really mess up on anything. I left my internship at about 3:30.
Post 13: April 7
Today was not a mandatory day to go to my internship, but I went to work on my project. I was just working on DataCAD the whole time pretty much, and I got like half of the project done!
Post 12: March 31
Today I arrived at my internship a little late - 8:30. The reason for me being late was because BART was experiencing delays - the BART train ahead of the one I was on broke down at Montgomery station and we had to wait for almost twenty minutes before we got to Embarcadero. Also, the BART people were still working on cleaning up the tracks because yesterday (Tuesday) morning, there was a fire in the tunnel between Powell and Civic Center. But, I got to my internship and explained myself, and my mentor understood. I knew already what I had to do once I got there, get working on my project because there is still a lot of things I have to finish and finalize. Most of the day today, I was on DataCAD 12 and just drafting the structural design of my house. Eventually, once I have all of the correct measurements drafted, I will either draw in the outlines of the furniture in my house using DataCAD, or sketch them by hand using colored pencils, pens, etc. Oh, my academic seminar teacher, Morgan, came in today to meet my mentor and have a quick meeting with him and I. The meeting went really well, I think - we (my mentor and I) explained and briefly showed what Marshall/Lee Architects Inc. is all about, and I also showed Morgan an incomplete draft of my project so that she could see that I am making progress towards the exhibition. I left my internship at 3:45/4:00.
Post 11: March 24
Today I arrived at my internship at 8:15 and left at around 2:30/ 2:45 with my mentor. I spoke to him about my final project and what I needed to do to get a jump start on it. I found that I needed to sketch up my entire house with the measurements I took last night (Tuesday night). Then, I went onto DataCAD 12 - a program used at at many, if not all, architecture firms (CAD stands for Computer Aided Design) and it helps architects to create drafts and copies without writing and/or drawing too much. In DataCAD 12, I used a preset layout to draw my house out with the correct measurements. My final project for the exhibition will be a presentation of my house in its existing form, then another presentation of my house remodeled the way my clients want it (my family members). By the way, this is all fiction, no actual remodeling will take place. Today was a good day because I really got moving on my final project.
Post 10: March 17
Today I arrived at BART at 7:05 am and just missed the train, so I had to catch the 7:19 train which took me almost a half an hour to reach the Powell Station in the city. I then walked from the station, up Powell Street four blocks to Post Street, then took a left on Post and walked another 6 or 7 blocks to the corner of Hyde Street and Post Street (the location of the architecture firm). I walked into the office at 8:15. I got straight to work on my project with first drawing it up by hand, then taking that sketch and I applied it to the DataCAD program on the touch-screen computer - SUPER COOL. I left my internship at 3:30.
Post 9: March 10
Today I arrived at my internship at 8:30, a little late, because of the BART being held u, and I left at 3:45/ 4:00. My mentor had heard over the news that BART had had some delays so he wasn't too angry - I hope. When I arrived at my internship I got straight to work on my project. The project was to use a pen/pencil and draft out the floor plan of my bedroom - FROM MEMORY. It was cool to sketch out everything in my room, but I was surprised that once I got home I realized that I had forgotten many pieces of furniture that were in my room i.e. a dresser that is almost as tall as me! Thats pretty much all I did for today, it took a lot of tedious work time.
Post 8: March 3
TI arrived at my internship at 8:15 and left at around 3:30/3:45. I spoke to my mentor about the design process of architecture and learned that architecture is "EVERYTHING". You need to gain prior knowledge about the area you are remodeling, i.e. know where the existing doors and windows are, know what and where the existing furniture is, the electrical and heating areas in the building or room, etc. Today I also worked on sketching out a floor plan of my bedroom from memory; doors, windows, furniture, etc. I found it really interesting to try and remodel my room on the sketch because it was much easier to create a plan then remodel rather than make a plan as you go.
Post 7: February 24
I stayed home sick today, so I did not go to work. I did contact my mentor and my advisor to let them know that I would not be in this morning.
Post 6: February 17
Today I arrived at my internship at 8:15 and I left at 3:30/3:45. Today I was just working on sketching out my bedroom and drawing up the existing furniture and its location. Then I took a piece of tracing paper, with grids on it, and drew up the new locations for my furniture, and I also drew up the locations of all the outlets, phone jacks, heater vents, and lights. This is about all i did today because it was important to learn how to draft sketches by hand more than on computer.
Post 5: February 10
Today I arrived at my internship at 8:15 and I left at around 3:30/3:45. Last week I was introduced to DataCAD - so i was mainly devoting my time to it today - because I didn't have much time to figure it out last week and it was really getting interesting. It was cool to look around the office and see all the other architects working on the same program, but the thing is that they're going really fast and smoothy and making it look easy, whereas I look like a little five year old trying to understand rocket science. Its okay though, I h
Post 4: February 3
Today I arrived at my internship at 8:15 and I left at around 3:30/3:45. I kept looking and understanding new information that would further my learning, and eventually aid me in completing my final exhibition project. I was reading and looking over floor plans and schematics for old projects that the firm had already finished - which was pretty interesting, i mean there was A TON of reading, but it all pertained to what I was going to be doing on my final project. In the last about 2 - 3 hours of my day, I was introduced to DataCAD.
Post 3: January 27
Today I arrived at my internship at 8:15 and I left at around 3:30/3:45. Today I went to Novato with Chris. Chris is a fellow co-worker at the firm and he is also a really cool guy. He skies, hikes, bike rides, and does a lot of other things; he actually went to college to become a paramedic, how he ended up at Marshall/Lee Architects was a really interesting story. But when we got to Novato, we took measurements at this small kindergarten preschool which was to determine the slope that was on this hill. I have always wondered how in the world people measured the slope - until now.
Post 2: January 20
On my first day “at work”; I had to get up at 6:00, took BART to Powell station, walked roughly 5 – 5 ½ blocks to Post Street, then 6 blocks to my internship – IN THE POURING DOWN RAIN! When I arrived at my internship, I first introduced myself to everyone that was there that day and then conferred with Ed to see what I could do on my first day. Besides the fact that I was drenched with rain, my first day at my internship was very interesting, because I got a good look at what everyone was working on and how they were working on it. I kept my mind open and was willing to do anything throughout the day, and I think that if I keep these attributes running well, I won’t have any problems. I had a lot of “down time”, but it was the first day, things will pick up and get moving eventually. I don’t have any questions for my mentor or my academic seminar teacher at this time.
Post 1: January 6
I did not go to Job Shadow Day because I did not have a set internship. I choose to procrastinate and put off the responsibility that I had in order to attain a solid internship. My mentor’s name is Ed Chan, he is a good friend f the family and was a past baseball coach that I had a few years back. I am working at Marshall/ Lee Inc. – an architectural firm over in San Francisco – with Ed Chan and a few of his co-workers. This firm is located on 888 Post Street, San Francisco, CA 94109. At my internship, I will be learning the basic principles of architecture and use those skills in creating a final project that demonstrates my knowledge.
