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ATC students take KEA tour

December 3rd 6:54 pm | Lorna Ellis Print this article   Email this article   Create a Shortlink for this article

On November 16, 2011, the Industrial Mine Technology students in the Millwright program at the Alaska Technical Center went to the Kotzebue Electric Association for a tour of the plant.

According to their instructor, Charles Keeter, students need to see real-life applications of what they are learning about.

"It was great to see just how engaged the students were, to see how what they have been learning would be used in the field," Keeter said.

"I got to see some cool stuff like real big generators and an infrared pyrometer. We got to see what we will be doing in the near future," said Robert Jackson of Kiana.

Claude Wilson showed the group how they use a thermal imaging camera to make certain that the equipment is running efficiently and effectively. This not only ensures longevity of the equipment, but also helps to lower the overhead costs to run the power plant.

David Brown of Noorvik thought the tour was very informative.

"We got to see how the computerized system minimizes having to go out and check things out," Brown said.

They were shown that the thermal imaging camera is so sensitive that if you take your shoes off and walk across the floor, it actually shows where you stepped.

"Claude told us that when you change the oil system, you have to match up the seals and bearings to match the different oil. This reduces the frequent changing of the oil seals," Brown said. Bearings and seals had been the recent training module for the class.

"We got to see the stuff we studied in class in action. We saw seals, lock out/tag out tags, different types of gaskets, pipes and blowers that we had been learning about in class. The tour was a good experience," said Michael Stalker of Noatak.

Wilson also explained how the wind towers and battery backup system worked and how this will help the power company to be more effective in the long run.

Along with the curriculum, ATC also teaches students about employability skills. The college tries to stress the importance of dependability in the workplace.

Russell Whitney, the counselor at ATC, went along to take pictures.

"Since the tour, we have talked about how the citizens of Kotzebue rely on KEA operators to report to work and perform their job so that our electric needs are met," Whitney said. "Without these operators, we would be in the dark and in the cold. For the millwright class, the visit served as a good example of reliability in action."

Charles Keeter and the ATC students are very appreciative to the KEA team for taking the time to show them around and relate what goes on at the plant to what the students are learning in class.

 

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