Workplace training drives CA Teen to robotics

And Nihil Caul’s parents are engineers, and as a 17-year-old robotics apprentice, he hopes to follow their footsteps-but it goes faster and faster.

Kaul, a senior, who attended Amador Valley High in the Bay area, works as a Clarach technician at Kensington Laboratories in Dublin. Kensington delivers robotics and automation equipment to semiconductorS Its products include waffle processing robots that hold and move ultra thin silicone waffles, which are cut into computer chips.

Kaul said his parents, who emigrated from India, had their first practical engineering experiences after college. His mother, who was wondering about this apprenticeship, told him that the only non -academic courses offered by the high school were home economies and shops.

Year -round apprenticeship is one of the first high -tech apprentices started by Amador Valley High. Unified School District Pleasanton has put several students in local technology companies, and employees plan to develop the program next year. But there are many more students who apply for the opportunities, said Kimberly Greenhouse, one of the training teachers based on work in the field.

California is Investing billions of dollars in training and training programsS Last month, civil servants announced that $ 16 million had just been awarded the apprenticeship aimed at “youth opportunity”, often out of school or unemployed, and $ 52 million went to apprenticeships and healthcare.

Cowl talks about his apprentice with Calmatters. His comments were edited for length and clarity.

You are among the first technological apprentices of your high school and the first in the role of robotics. How do you like it?

I always knew that engineering was something I wanted to pursue. It’s really like being at work, actually having a day in life at a robotic company. If I want to continue this area, it will look. And let me double, knowing that I want to do it.

What is the typical day there?

I have not left only a specific role. I always spin, do different things.

Kensington produces these machines called EFEMS. It means a module from the front end of the equipment. This is a waffle processing robot. As in these factories – like in the Intel factory – where they produce (computer) chips and other things, it must be completely clean, even dust stains. People can’t even handle it just because of the oils from our hands. So they have to be robots. So these are those machines that take the waffles and then move them before cutting by byt chips.

Cleanliness is a big thing in my work. Every time I deal with any part, I have to delete it two or three times before and after dealing with it … This is a production floor. They use me to help and I learn different things as I walk together.

What made you want to be an engineer?

Ever since I was born, I have been obsessed with cars and the appearance of how they can be presented, especially in motor sports. I always loved working with my hands. I’m not a good type just to sit behind a computer and go nine hours straight.

I also knew I wanted to get into engineering, but I also wanted to maintain an open mind. I decided that I wanted every experience I could enter the field. I had a little engineering path at my school. I had taken three years of engineering hours.

How has your life changed since you became an apprentice last summer?

I like what I do, but it’s a big commitment. It wasn’t super bad in the summer because I didn’t have school. I’m a senior now, so I make applications in college and all these things. So it was really hurried. If I weren’t in this program, I would have had a lot more free time, which I don’t know what I would do with that.

I take distinction computer integrated production (class). The idea was that what I learned in the class would coincide with what I was learning about work.

What are you most proud of achieving?

This is my first job, so I never had to balance work, life, school, friends. So I think you definitely taught me time management.

I learn things that people do daily. It is one thing to learn in the classroom and make projects. This is (another) something to accept what I learned in my engineering classes or physics hours and apply it to real -life scenarios.

Sometimes my leader will give me something, showing me how to do it and I did something similar to that in my engineering class. Even my managers (said): “I’m really impressed with how you already know a lot of these things.”

In engineering (class), we eventually build many things with screwdrivers and metal pieces, in fact we build tangible things. I go to the production floor of my work and I already feel at home.

What were the challenges you faced?

I like to play golf. I have applications in college. And I also had two online, asynchronous classes. So I didn’t really stay from above when the school started. I understood this and it was like, “What do I do with my time?” It was a few weeks at school and I’m super back in my online hours. So I took a step back from golf and hanging out with friends. I was very focused on school and colleges apps, work.

There is an online class that I have to take at my local community college and there are evaluations and forms of registration and meetings and various things that I have not really foreseen. There are two or three people in the Passon school neighborhood of who had the checks with me. They were useful and supported and guided me.

How can this program improve? How would you change it?

Many of my friends and people with whom I talk to do not know a program like this even. I think this is a really great program and this is the first year we do, but it flew under the radar.

The financial support for this story was provided by the SMIDT Foundation and the James Irvin Foundation.