Written by Sara Hinds, photo provided by Emma Sheaffer
The building plans are set and construction has begun on the Performing Arts Center (PAC) building on Doane’s Crete campus. The finished space will be the new home to the theatre and music departments — but in the meantime, it serves as a unique opportunity for four Doane engineering students.
Emma Sheaffer, Alec Harshaw, Ethan Reinert and Luke Collison are reimagining PAC construction plans as their senior group project. They obtained the official plans from Clark & Enersen, the architecture firm in charge of PAC, surveyed for locations and elevations and got to work on individual tasks.
Sheaffer completed a 3D-rendering of the steel in the existing plan, which includes all the beams, girders, joists and columns. The group’s new design features small changes to the location of a wall or beam, and a change in the materials used.
“They [Clark & Enerson] are using pre-constructed concrete, so we are going to be using more steel in our building,” Sheaffer said. “That was just a small design change that we wanted to have to make it our own.”
The group shared their findings and diagrams with peers during Mind Expo on April 24 and will present to Doane engineering professors during finals week.
While the project was a fun way to incorporate real-world scenarios literally just outside their classroom, it was another chance for Sheaffer and her classmates to use CAD and engineering software.
Sheaffer said they regularly use 3D software in classes and labs. She’s become well-versed in SolidWorks, AutoCAD, Civil 3D, Risa 3D and Risa 2D — which are the same or similar to programs she’d use as an engineer after college.
Sheaffer starts in August as a field/office engineer for Kiewet Corporation. The cumulative hands-on experiences she’s had in Doane’s engineering program helped her land the job, she said.
While a job is the ultimate goal for every graduating senior, Sheaffer won’t soon forget her time in the engineering program, especially her final group project.
“My senior project incorporates all of the knowledge that I've gained from Doane,” Sheaffer said. “Completing full-scale steel design for the new performing arts facility is something that I'll be proud of for a long time.”
