It’s not often fathers get to share their work with their sons. It’s so rare in fact, that our country has adopted special days to take our children to work and shadow our daily activities on the job. For UPM employee Ralph Zimmerman, AKA Assistant Scout Master for Boy Scout Troop #47, this opportunity was realized in a very hands-on way. Ralph helped his troop earn their merit badge for Metalworking. To do this, Ralph had a chance to share his knowledge working with stainless steel with all the boys in his troop, including his 15 year old son, Jefferey.
“I work with metal every day. It’s nice that I get to show the boys in a small way how the kind of work I do impacts the tools people use all the time.”
Zimmerman has been a part of UPM’s Metals cutting team for 17 years. When he proposed that UPM assist with the scout project, his co-workers were eager to get involved.
United Performance Metals Laser Operator, Dave Williams, created a CAD design to program UPM’s Mazak Laser Cutting System which made the stainless steel blanks of the hatchet. A video was filmed of the hatchet creation so that the boys in the troop could get a complete understanding of the laser cutting process. After reviewing the safety rules, the boys carefully sharpened the edges of the blade head.
Next, the troop fashioned wooden handles for their hatchets as well as leather satchels to contain them. Each of these activities helped the boys work towards their woodworking and leatherworking badges. It was quite an involved project, but one that Zimmerman knew was important.
“It took a while to finish all of the hands-on work, but knowing how proud the boys were made it all worthwhile.”
Posted July 31, 2012
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