BVT students brainstorm to solve cafeteria COVID-19 issue

A design challenge at Blackstone Valley Regional Vocational Technical High School (BVT) inspired students and staff to work collaboratively to develop a creative solution to a common COVID-related issue, limited cafeteria seating.

With only two students seated per 12-foot table, facing the same direction during a lunch block, Vocational Director Tom Belland had the thought: what if one of the school’s shops could engineer a solution to maximize allowable seating per lunch period safely.? Overcoming that hurdle would be one less barrier’ to bringing more students back to BVT.

Belland discussed the concept of challenging several departments to design and build a user-friendly tabletop barrier with Construction Technology instructor Mark Fitzpatrick, Electronics & Engineering Technology instructor Mike Norton, and Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning & Refrigeration instructors Daniel Morin & Joshua Dunton. Ultimately those conversations inspired the idea for a Cafeteria Tabletop Design Challenge within the three shops.

“The prototype had to be secure and stable on a table without drilling or clamping, quickly removable, and easily cleaned, disinfected, and reusable to meet the requirements. Each shop came up with an initial design idea and a prototype for a barrier build,” explained Belland. “All three designs were well thought out and had many positive attributes.”

The winning design was the aluminum plexiglass model submitted by Electronics & Engineering. They chose to use 80/20 aluminum because it is lightweight but strong. Plexiglass for its visibly transparent, shatter-resistant, and durable attributes, and manufacturing 3D printed the endcaps to reduce costs further. But recycling and reusability were the deciding factors that lead to the win, with nearly all the materials used for the build being 100 percent reusable and repurposed for use in BVT’s Robotics Club.

“I didn’t have to look far for inspiration,” said Luke Morrison, a senior from Douglas in Electronics & Engineering Technology and a member of the Robotics Club. “In the corner of our shop rests our competition robot, its aluminum and lightweight, but designed and built to compete against opponents in a series of specific challenges, and we always want more materials to improve it. It was fun and rewarding to take skills I’ve learned and the materials used in shop and apply them in this design challenge.”

The Drafting department assisted with detailed drawings for the barriers, which will help a great deal with mastery preparation and assembly. Isaac Curley, a senior from Uxbridge in Drafting & Design Technology, uses Inventor CAD software that provides him with the ability to produce professional-grade 3D mechanical part drawings.

He said, “It is rewarding to use my computer-aided drafting (CAD) skills to good use in this barrier project. The drawings that took me a school day to produce will aid students in Advanced Manufacturing & Fabrication, who will read them and know how long to cut the aluminum pieces.”

Belland said, “Our students and graduates continue to rise to meet any challenge with enthusiasm and work hard to deliver impressive results. The Class of 2020 chose to give back to their school community with a generous donation that covered the cost of all of the materials needed to produce 32 tabletop barriers.”