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Texas Tech Donates Machinery to High School Rocketeers

Department of Industrial Engineering Gives Milling Machine to Fredericksburg High School

Thanks to the generosity of Texas Tech University's Department of Industrial Engineering, some old machinery is getting put to new use as part of Fredericksburg High School's aero science program.

The Department of Industrial Engineering officially donated the Bridgeport milling machine to Fredericksburg High School in February. Milton Smith, Ph.D., chair of the industrial engineering department, presented the machine to Brett Williams, Fredericksburg's aero science program instructor, for use in technology courses. The estimated cost of the milling machine is approximately $4,000.

Students in the aero science program will use the machine to fabricate rocket parts from scratch, manufacturing the parts based on designs they create in class. The pieces will eventually be fitted to rocket projects developed as part of their course curriculum.

Fredericksburg High School’s aero science program began in 1996 with 22 male students. Now, almost 120 students participate in the program and approximately 30 percent are female students. As part of the program, students learn to design, build, test and launch a 25-foot-tall aluminum/titanium hybrid sounding rocket as high as 10,000 feet.

The Hill Country high school has a relationship with Texas Tech through the Texas Partnership for Aero-science Education and is supported by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics and the Aerospace Industry Association.