Providing STEM Career Paths: Robotic Navigation Systems and More

Science, technology, engineering,and math play pivotal roles at TDIndustries. With the future of our company and the industry depending on current students who will one day be our fellow Partners, celebrating National STEM Day is essential. 

Why? The evolving jobs of the 21st century require STEM skills to be successful. Our commitment to providing outstanding career opportunities and exceeding customers' expectations holds us accountable for encouraging students of all ages to exercise their potentials in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM).  

We strive to provide vast opportunities for students to identify key skills and explore a multitude of career paths at TDIndustries. Our collaboration with students from the University of Texas at Dallas (UTD) is a great example: 

In May 2016, TDIndustries welcomed a team of students from UTD's Jonsson School of Engineering and Computer Science for the Learning in the Morning meeting. The meetings are monthly engineering gatherings that feature topics to help Partners create solutions to exceed our customers’ expectations. The team worked with TD to create a “Robotic Layout System Design” to improve upon the company’s currently used Trimble System.

The idea for the project came from Tim McNew, Senior Vice President and the UTD student team’s corporate mentor. After discussing the Trimble System with a Partner, Tim received a call from his wife about problems she was having with the Roomba vacuum cleaning robot at home. The back-to-back conversations gave Tim an idea: what if we could combine the Trimble System with an autonomous robotic system that would allow it to mark spaces independently?

The project is part of UT Dallas’ UTDesign program, which pairs engineering and computer science student teams with companies to create solutions for real world problems. The “Robotic Layout System Design” project is the first collaboration between TD and UTDesign. The program gives students hands-on design experience, and allowing TD to get cost-effective options for solving challenges in the workplace and to test the skills of potential Partners.

“It has been a fun process working with the students,” says Tim. “They did a great job getting us to this point. The six-person team was made up of students in mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, and computer science. I think it was a great experience for the students in building a collaborative, diverse team to tackle a problem. They handled it great.”

Learn more about STEM career paths at TDIndustries by reading Brandon and Getsemani's stories.