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Bringing real-world pneumatic experiences to college students

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As the fall semester for Purdue Polytechnic Institute rolled to a close earlier in December, students in the school’s capstone programs reached the half-way point on their efforts. Proportion-Air is sponsoring two capstone teams this school year.

Both teams visited the company’s Indiana manufacturing facility in the fall semester, learning about manufacturing processes and asking questions to help them complete their projects.

Cutline Purdue Team 15 Jeremy Capstone 2023: Burling Valve Production Manager Jeremy Carpenter (right) explains an internal part of a Burling regulator to Purdue Polytechnic Institute Team 15 members Hunter Kepner (left) and Ray Kurniawan (center). The team is working on improving the superheated steam capabilities of a Burling regulator.
Purdue Team 15 Jeremy Capstone 2023: Burling Valve Production Manager Jeremy Carpenter (right) explains an internal part of a Burling regulator to Purdue Polytechnic Institute Team 15 members Hunter Kepner (left) and Ray Kurniawan (center). The team is working on improving the superheated steam capabilities of a Burling regulator.

For these students, the capstone program is two academic semesters, generally at the end of their undergraduate careers. They undertake a group project that showcases the knowledge they’ve gained throughout their programs. The teams are two of several capstone groups wrapping up their college careers at Purdue. In the program, they are named by their team number. Proportion-Air’s sponsored teams are numbers 15 and 16.

Team 15’s project is to improve the design of Burling Valve regulator, specifically to perform more effectively in superheated steam applications. The team includes three students from the Purdue Polytechnic Institute.

Vincent Zhi is a junior majoring in mechatronics engineering technology. He’s the project leader and secretary for the team. A Chinese-American, he has spent half of his life in Shanghai, China, and half in Fremont, California.Β Christopher β€œRay” Kurniawan comes to Purdue from Jakarta, Indonesia. He will graduate in 2024 with a degree in mechanical engineering technology. Kurniawan is the team’s mechanical designer and process manager. Hunter Kepner of Fishers, Indiana, is a senior majoring in mechanical engineering technology. He’s the scheduler, lead researcher and communication manager for Team 15.

Purdue Team 16 Cook Capstone 2023: During the team’s visit to the factory, Proportion-Air President Dan Cook (center), offers some ideas to Purdue Polytechnic Institute Team 16 for improving their capstone project. From left: TJ Manifold, Nico Macchiavello, Cook, Jacob Nicholson and Ian Cockrell. The team is developing an acoustic position sensor.
Purdue Team 16 Cook Capstone 2023: During the team’s visit to the factory, Proportion-Air President Dan Cook (center), offers some ideas to Purdue Polytechnic Institute Team 16 for improving their capstone project. From left: TJ Manifold, Nico Macchiavello, Cook, Jacob Nicholson and Ian Cockrell. The team is developing an acoustic position sensor.

The second Proportion-Air team, Team 16, is working on a project to create an acoustic sensor solution to provide proportional control for cylinder position without using a rod. Five students are working on this project.

Jason Ripper is a senior from Edelstein, Illinois, majoring in audio engineering. He’s Team 16’s testing and validation manager. Jacob Nicholson is a mechanical engineering technology and automation and systems integration engineering technology major from Fort Wayne, Indiana. Nicholson is the mechanical design leader and manufacturing process manager. TJ Manifold of Rising Sun, Indiana, is a senior in electrical engineering technology. His role on the team is secretary and budget/cost manager. Nico Macchiavello of McLean, Virginia, is pursuing a double major in electrical & audio engineering technology with a certificate in music technology. Macchiavello is the project manager and electrical design lead. Carmel, Indiana’s Ian Cockrell is a senior in robotics engineering technology with a minor in electrical engineering technology. He’s the manufacturing process manager.

Updates on each team’s progress are available on Proportion-Air’s Facebook and LinkedIn pages, as well as the company blog at .

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