Together with Veterans Elementary School and other local manufacturers, Haws Corporation’s Research & Development team created and implemented a custom drinking fountain project for 2nd and 5th grade students for the 2016-2017 school year. After working with the STEM Academy faculty and students for several years, Michael Joyer – Haws R&D Manager, developed a new project idea that would allow the students to fully engage with an engineering project to help make the connection between the creative and technical side of science, technology, engineering and art. A drinking fountain was a natural choice for Michael Joyer and Mindy Haffke, Haws R&D Engineer, given Haws’ 110 year heritage as the inventor of the original drinking faucet in the Berkeley School District. “From the beginning, this project was something our students held dear,” said Ron Jones, a fifth-grade teacher at the school who worked directly with the engineers. “They took great joy in considering their ideas, collaborating with their classmates, and creating something that will be on our campus for many years to come.”
Throughout the process of creating the fountain, the Haws team met with the students and helped guide their project by melding individual student design concepts to create a bird’s nest drinking fountain with nests for the water bowls, eagle head bubblers - a tribute to the STEM Academy’s eagle mascot - and a water mister. The process involved 3D models, castings, and design changes with students participating monthly to finalize the creation. B&J Inc. donated the material and metal fabrication services to bring the students’ unique design to life and additional support services were donated by NeoMek and Zevado Corporation. In addition, students created a mural under the direction of art teacher, Elizabeth Brooks, and resource teacher, Alita Lutrick. “It was a fun project to help the kids design their own fountain,” said Mike Joyer, R&D Manager of Haws. “We really enjoyed teaching them the engineering process from start to finish and we hope this project inspires all of them to consider engineering careers when they grow up.”
About Haws®
For more than 100 years, Haws has been committed to inventing, designing and manufacturing hydration products as well as standardized and customized emergency response products. With more than 8,000 distribution locations and 250 employees worldwide, we continually focus on quality, service, reliability and complete solution support. Headquartered in Sparks, Nevada, USA, Haws is globally represented with locations in Switzerland, Singapore, China, India, and Brazil. For more information on Haws, visit www.Hawsco.com and follow us on our blog at blog.hawsco.com.
