Problem solvers
Published 10:15 am Thursday, April 21, 2011
Seventh-graders solve hog-sized problem at Hormel
A few seventh-graders were happy as pigs in mud Wednesday as they solved an actual engineering problem Hormel engineers encountered.
The Integrated Physics and Technology class, an introductory physics course for gifted seventh-graders, listened as Chad Sayles, a Hormel Corporate Office engineer, spoke to them about how important it was to go to college so they could solve real-world problems of their own one day.
“It’s a nice way to get students learning about technology and engineering,” said Tom Fritz, IPT teacher.
Fritz invited Sayles to talk about engineering last year, but asked if Sayles would be willing to show his students the real-world applications Fritz’s physics lessons could have by coming up with a problem for students to solve.
Sayles remembered a problem Hormel had with transporting pig skins from one building to another several years ago. Hormel engineers spent some time stuck in a rut before creating a pipe system which used compressed air to move the skins.
“It was something I thought we could explain to the kids,” Sayles said.
Students had worked on several solutions before the class and presented them to Sayles, who found that most of the ideas were ones Hormel engineers had looked at or tried out.
“I think it’s amazing that a bunch of seventh-graders came up with those solutions,” Sayles said.
The biggest surprise for seventh-graders Kenny Ree and Simon Johnson was their idea, using pipes to transport the skins, came closest to what Hormel engineers actually did. Needless to say, they were in hog heaven.
“It was insane,” Johnson said. “I didn’t think we had the right answer.”