Dale SlotmanEGR 367 Manufacturing ProcessesLaboratory 1 SummaryLab Exercise 1 was an introduction to the machine shop. In it, we became familiar with and certified to run all machines in the machine shop except the welders, which require separate certification. We became familiar with the safety rules that apply to the lab and learned to operate the machines safely.Two of the machines required separate certification. The mills and the lathes required us to mill and lathe ferrous and non-ferrous materials for each machine. The other machines were simply explained and demonstrated. These other machines include the Drop-Arm Ban Saw, the Veritcal Ban Saw, the Drill Press, and the Radial Arm Saw.When demonstrating how to use the lathes and mills, Ron emphasized the need to know “speeds and feeds.” Speed is the rpm that the machine head is running at. Feed is the speed at which the part is moved. On the lathes, the feed is the speed of the carriage (which holds the cutting tool). On the mills, the feed is how fast the part to be machined is fed to the bit.Ron emphasized that when cutting ferrous materials (harder materials), the speed should be much slower. Cutting aluminum requires a much faster rpm on the cutting toolthan steel does. Cutting high carbon steel requires a speed faster than low carbon steel, because it is harder. The feed rate determines the visible outcome of your part. A slow feed rate gives a nice finish, while a high feed rate allows you to see every pass of the machine. A high feed rate makes machining a lot faster, though.I feel that I learned quite a bit in this lab. Before it, I had never run a mill or a lathe before. Now I feel somewhat proficient in running both. Seeing how different feed rates and different cutting speeds affect the end product is very interesting.I also learned quite a bit about safety in the lab. While some aspects of safety (such as wearing safety glasses when cutting) are common sense, others are not. Clamping only one side of the piece when using the chop saw makes sense once it is explained that clamping both sides will pinch the saw, but it is not an obvious thing. Also, knowing which levers can be moved only when the machine is in operation and which can only be moved when the machine is stopped is a very important safety aspect. It also saves much wear and tear on the machines.I think that what I learned in this lab will help me with this class by making me more familiar with the machining processes used. Knowing the different speed and feed rates will probably help when we talk about how machining affects the microstructure and macrostructure of machined parts. Being certified in the machine shop will also help me by allowing me to use the machine shop in labs to come.I feel that being certified and knowledgeable in the machine shop will help me greatly in my other classes. If I every need to machine anything for a project, I will be able to use the machine shop. Not many students who are juniors in the program are certified, either, so I will probably be the only student in my group is certified in the shop.I really enjoyed this lab. It was fun machining. Even though it goes a little bit slow at times, it is still amazing to me to be able to see a chunk of metal become whatever size and shape I want it to