Auto industry inspires mechanical engineering student
Patrick Draper named Engineer of the Month
Patrick Draper. Photo/provided.
Patrick Draper is driven by a love of the automotive industry. It’s what led the Lexington, Ky, native to study mechanical engineering and why he opted to do all of his cooperative education (co-op) rotations at Valvoline.
Draper, who will graduate from the University of Cincinnati in 2021, was selected as the Undergraduate Engineer of the Month by UC’s College of Engineering and Applied Science (CEAS).
Like so many CEAS students, Draper chose UC because of the positive comments he had heard about co-op, which incorporates paid industry work experience into the curriculum.
“I thought co-op work experience would be important not only to verify my choice in mechanical engineering but also to get a head start on a career in industry,” Draper said. “There are so many diverse applications for mechanical engineering which were unknown to me before co-op.”
Draper’s co-ops at Valvoline Engine Laboratory in Ashland, Kentucky, offered broad opportunities working on a range of unique projects that required different skills and presented new challenges. Throughout his time at Valvoline, Draper worked on lubricant-related vehicle and engine tests, helped to build a custom electric vehicle, conducted tests to validate a new motor oil, assembled and disassembled test engines, and other projects. He even appears in a Valvoline television commercial (see below).
Photo/provided
To further his interests, Draper and some co-workers bought an old car and competed in dirt track races.
“It was great to build relationships with people outside of the workplace and I still consider them good friends,” he said.
Draper has been a member of the UC chapter of American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) since his first year at UC and he is currently co-president of the organization.
“I enjoy planning future meetings and thinking about what our members might want or need. I remember being a freshman and having so many questions for upperclassmen and so I have tried to facilitate interactions between upper and underclassmen,” he said.
He has also worked to create sessions for ASME members that focus on professional development and interaction with industry.
Draper is part of the University Honors program. He used his mechanical inclination to learn how to repair bicycles as a volunteer for an ASME sub-group, BikeWorks, that fixes and donates used bicycles to people in the community.
Following graduation, Draper said he hopes to get a full-time job at Valvoline or another automotive company and he plans to find another old car project to work on in his spare time.
While working as a co-op, Patrick Draper was featured in the commercial above for Valvoline. You can also spot him in the background of this TV ad.
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