Mold Builder Brings STEAM to its Facility

Geri Anderson, marketing director for M.R. Mold & Engineering of Brea, California, shared with me the outcome of their recent student event where they continue to educate young people that manufacturing is a viable alternative to college. 

Recently M.R. teamed up with Century High School in Santa Ana, California, which promotes a program called STEAM (for Science,Technology, Engineering, Art and Math) and offers students related technology courses. 

Rick Finnie, president of M.R. Mold visited the school and introduced his company and reviewed the basics of moldmaking to the students.  Two weeks later 18 student and 3 teachers toured M.R. Mold.  They began in Engineering and were shown how their classes apply to M.R.'s business.  A tour of the shop followed.  Here they were introduced to the many machines and processes that are part of building a mold.  The two-hour experience ended in M.R.'s  Tech Center where participants saw three completed molds in action: a plastic injection, silicone injection and a compression mold producing parts. 

The NTMA (National Tooling & Machining Association) and R.D. Abbott were also present and involved in educating the students at M.R. Mold.

Surveys provided by Century High School solidified that M.R. not only truly educated the kids, they also sparked interest in students who did not know about manufacturing previously.  Click here for survey results and comments.

As Rick Finnie says,  “You don’t have to become a moldmaker, but find your passion and BUILD something!  Take pride in the fact that you used your hands to produce something."