Lessons Learned from a First-Year Engineering Wind Turbine Project

A first-year interdisciplinary engineering program at a small, private institution emphasizes hands-on experiences and collaborative learning. A four-week project in the middle of the fall semester entails prototyping small-scale wind turbines, allowing students to demonstrate their skills in 3D modeling, 3D printing, experimentation, and data analysis. The proposed poster will highlight the observed advantages of this project, including streamlined connections among technology (Onshape > Cura > Creality Ender 3 > scroll saw > multimeter & anemometer > Excel) in support of an "analysis" phase of the engineering design process. This project has undergone numerous revisions. Thus, challenges and mitigation strategies will also be documented – for example, holding individuals accountable in a team project, 3D printing logistics for 150+ students, ensuring student safety, reducing costs, and generating consistently measureable data. In the most recent version of this project, a team of six pre-service STEM education students helped redevelop the wind turbine testing apparatus. This new approach greatly reduced logistical bottlenecks and first-year student frustrations. An account of the year-to-year lessons learned will be provided.