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Meet Team 1 Plastics’ Summer 2017 Interns

Since 2011, Team 1 Plastics, a plastic injection molding company for the transportation industry, has offered summer internships for college students. During the summer of 2017, Team 1 was pleased to have three college interns from Ferris State University (FSU): Curtis Long, Miranda Seedorf, and Mitch Hemgesberg.

For Curtis Long, a senior at FSU and graduate of Charlotte High School (Charlotte, Michigan), this was his second Engineering internship at Team 1 Plastics. He said that he returned to Team 1 to get more experience in the plastics industry. Last year, his internship focused on the day-to-day work process of pulling and hanging molds. This summer’s internship was focused on experiencing “more of the managerial side of manufacturing and production and to see what it takes to monitor and launch projects.”

Working closely with Dave Seedorf, Team 1’s Engineering Manager, and Travis Castle, Project Engineer, Long was able to apply what he had learned from his Project Management class at FSU and get “first-hand experience in using those skills. The experience I got from last year’s internship carried over and helped me better understand how projects are evaluated, and the process it takes for the project to be completed. It was extremely beneficial for me to learn how to apply my project managing knowledge by working alongside Travis and Dave. After taking part in the process of tool development and project managing, I got to see first-hand just how intricate the overall success of a project can be and how much time and dedication it requires.”

In May 2017, Long received Associates degrees from FSU in both CAD Drafting & Tool Design and Plastics & Polymer Engineering. He anticipates receiving his Bachelors of Science degree in Plastics Engineering in Spring 2018. Long said that he is interested in either the “health care/medical or aerospace/defense industry for designing, processing, and molding components. I know that, much like the automotive industry, in making medical and aerospace components, there are going to be extremely important requirements with dimensions and tolerances, along with the overall finish and quality of the part. I think that after this final year at FSU, I will have enough knowledge and the skill set to make an impression no matter where I end up.”

Like Long, Miranda Seedorf had prior experience working at Team 1 Plastics. She worked as an Assembly Assistant in the summer of 2016. Born and raised in Albion, Michigan, Seedorf graduated from Concord High School in 2015. She is currently a junior at FSU, majoring in Criminal Justice with an anticipated graduation date of May 2019. She plans to pursue a career in local law enforcement.

For her internship at Team 1 Plastics, Seedorf was the Training Intern, working closely with Robert Clothier, Team 1’s Human Resources Manager. She said that her assignment was to “construct work instructions and work procedures for employees.” And her previous experience at Team 1 was helpful because her first assignment was writing work instructions and procedures for the Assembly Department.

Although this internship was not directly related to law enforcement, Seedorf said that she accepted the internship because it “would provide me with experience, and I hoped to become better at being more detail oriented which would contribute to my career.”

In evaluating the internship, Seedorf said, “I think this was a great experience. It helped me not only build my existing skills but also expand my skills. I have learned to be more illustrative, and I’ve also learned how to accommodate different needs.” She explained that when she was writing instructions for a task, she needed to consider that people learn differently. “For example, one person in training may be able to simply read over the instructions and understand the task right away. However, another person may need to read the instructions and see a visual in order to understand the task.”

Also completing an Engineering internship at Team 1 Plastics this summer was Mitch Hemgesberg. Hemgesberg is from Oakley, Michigan. He graduated from Chesaning Union High School in 2013, has attended Delta Community College in Saginaw, and is currently a Junior at FSU, expecting to graduate in 2018. He said that he plans to pursue a career in plastics engineering.

Hemgesberg used the internship as a litmus test of what a job in plastics engineering entails and whether or not he would enjoy it. “My assignment was to learn more about what being a plastics engineer is about and to give me an idea of whether I will like it or not. I hoped I would gain a lot of general knowledge about the plastics industry. I really wanted to know more about injection molding. I don’t have much background in the industry besides what I have been exposed to at school.”

Working closely with Dave Seedorf, he said that he “learned a lot about cleaning molds and setting them and running engineering trials.” And the internship was successful. “All of the work I’ve done relates to my career goals. I can really see myself being on the processing side of the job. This internship has taught me so much on that aspect of my career. I am surprised how much I learned while being here and how confident I have become doing certain tasks that I wasn’t very sure about before.”

All three students said that they would recommend an internship at Team 1 Plastics to other students. Seedorf said, “Having the opportunity for an internship is remarkable. It can provide experience for college students, lead to future job opportunities, and help develop networking skills. It is a great opportunity to boost self-confidence and social skills. Team 1 does a really good job showing you different aspects of the job. They are more than willing to help with anything you may need, and I like the fact that it is very hands on.”

Hemgesberg agreed, “I would recommend Team 1 to other college students. This internship has allowed me to diversify my portfolio and allowed me to branch out experience wise where a lot of other interns don’t get that experience. I really enjoyed working here and I enjoyed the work environment.”

And, Long summed up his experience. “I would highly recommend other students to strive for an internship at Team 1. Looking back at completing last year’s internship and finishing up this summer’s internship, I am truly blessed to have worked for a company as great as Team 1, to have learned from the people who work here, and to have gained all the experience I can handle during such a short time.”