Raymond hosts inaugural Engineering Day event at headquarters

The Raymond Corporation hosted more than 150 high school students at its headquarters in Greene, New York, on Friday, May 17, for the company’s inaugural Engineering Day. Students from more than nine schools across the Southern Tier of New York learned about career opportunities within engineering and its multitude of disciplines.

“At Raymond, our goal is to inspire students with engaging, hands-on learning experiences — from various areas of the engineering field — that they otherwise may not be able to experience in the classroom,” said Erric Heitmann, vice president of engineering, Raymond. “Engineering has a great number of disciplines that many don’t even realize. We are excited to showcase them and demonstrate how they are used right here at our facility, from computer engineering to manufacturing engineering — and beyond.”

Raymond’s Engineering Day featured more than 12 interactive exhibits, including 3D printing, modeling and analysis; augmented reality technology; iWAREHOUSE simulation; and the award-winning Raymond Virtual Reality Simulator.

Many of the students and teachers who attended are part of engineering programs at their respective schools. Project Lead The Way (PLTW) is one program that helps engage students in hands-on projects and empowers them to solve real-world challenges. This nationwide program prepares students to be successful in engineering and engineering technology careers, and also prepares them for postsecondary education in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

“We are very excited that our students can see how engineering is being used firsthand at a leading company right here in New York state,” said Marta Gaska, teacher and PLTW program director at Binghamton High School in Binghamton, New York. “We hope that, through the PLTW program and partners like Raymond, we can inspire the next generation of engineers.”

High school students who participate in Pathways in Technology Early College High School (P-TECH) also were in attendance. P-TECH is a program offered through the Board of Cooperative Educational Services of New York State. Its curriculum focuses on preparing students to earn an associate degree in either computer technology, engineering technology or health studies. This program enables students to earn an associate degree while working toward earning their high school diploma.