American Crane hosted student plant tours on Manufacturing Day 2016

Oct. 28, 2016 – American Crane & Equipment Corp., a manufacturer of overhead electric cranes and hoists, celebrated Manufacturing Day by inviting Grade 9 and 10 students from two local school districts (Reading and Boyertown) to tour its plant and participate in a presentation highlighting careers in manufacturing.

While walking through the manufacturing floor, students saw various areas where raw materials are received in, prepared and machined for production. American Crane’s tour guides explained that programming and operating complex machinery requires a “solid knowledge of mathematics, geometry and even physics.” Students also learned that science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education is imperative for innovative manufacturing.

In addition to the tours, students listened to a presentation given by American Crane’s human resources manager describing employment opportunities available at a manufacturing company. The students learned about the “life of a crane” and all the people involved in making overhead lifting equipment a reality, from sales to production and everyone in-between.

Each school also built a model-size Rokenbok gantry crane. The students divided themselves into task-oriented teams to gather, separate and assemble parts and assigned one student to be the project manager. When completed, the gantry crane had a fully operational trolley and hoist and stood a little taller than 2.5 feet.

Manufacturing Day, officially recognized on the first Friday in October, is an annual initiative that aims to change the perception of today’s manufacturing environment by giving industry players an opportunity to demonstrate advanced manufacturing technology to students, parents, educators and community members.

— With files from American Crane & Equipment Corp.