MICHAEL ANTHONY LOMBARDI

Reflection

AE 481W/482 Course Reflection

Midway through my internship at Fisher Marantz Stone, I approached my supervisors about obtaining a building for my upcoming thesis work.  After taking a look at several different projects, I felt that the Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center would be an interesting building to work with.  The impressive archives collection coupled with the unique etched glass walls initially caught my attention.  I also felt that the need to preserve the fragile collections on display would present an interesting and unique challenge.

One of the first roadblocks arrived at the beginning of the fall semester; I had difficulty obtaining a complete set of working drawings.  Ultimately I received a set of PDF and AutoCAD drawings, though I had already fallen several weeks behind in my schedule.  I also quickly learned that my electrical drawings were less specific than those of my peers.  I only had a riser diagram, and many panelboards and feeders were simply labeled “existing;” the Ransom Center was originally built in the 1970s and my project was limited to the renovation of two stories, meaning my knowledge of many existing systems was limited.  This proved to be a continual challenge throughout both semesters of work.

Overall, the AE Senior Thesis project was a valuable learning experience.  I enjoyed being able to focus on a very specific project and then set an agenda for redesign.  Interaction with professionals was also a very valuable component to the AE thesis.  In particular, my presentation at Lutron was an excellent opportunity to express my design intent to experienced professionals and hear their feedback and recommendations.  Their expert advice was invaluable in the redesign work that followed.  I also felt that communication skills were further emphasized with the need to summarize our work in a written report and succinct oral summary.  Conveying my work, research, and design intentions was an interesting challenge and greatly parallels the professional field.

That said, I do wish there was an opportunity to present our work in a less restricting presentation time limit; many of my studies were not included in my presentation simply because of time limitations.  This was especially frustrating because I feel much of the work may be skipped over when reading my lengthy 250 page report.  Increasing the time allotted to present our work would allow for a less rehearsed style during speech delivery while placing students in a less stressful situation, thereby allowing them to better convey their work.

CPEP and Discussion Board Reflection

An important component to the AE Senior Thesis project was the creation of a Capstone Project e-Portfolio.  As part of our thesis requirements, we were given the task of uploading and maintaining a website that documented our yearlong work.  I felt that this website was an excellent place to summarize our thesis work in a readily accessible form.  Maintaining the website was at times a challenge, but the provided website templates helped ease the process.

The AE discussion board was an interesting tool that allowed one to ask thesis-related questions to industry professionals.  Though I did not find myself needing to use this resource frequently, I was happy to know it was available and do feel that it helped me when I accessed it.

ABET Outcome Survey