Mechanical & Manufacturing Engineering · West Michigan

Chase Kramer

Engineering student with three years running a production floor before college. I design parts and processes that hold up on the shop floor, with a focus on product design, lean manufacturing, and controls.

View projects Resume (PDF) Portfolio (PDF)
Chase Kramer
3 yrsProduction Supervisor
2Manufacturing engineering internships
3.97GPA at GRCC
CSWACertified SOLIDWORKS Associate
01

Projects

SolidWorks render of the hopper-fed, stepper-driven ball loader for a drawer slide retainer
Loader · CAD
3D-printed black ball retainer
Retainer · printed
Product design · AEGIS · Oct 2026 to present

Drawer Slide Ball Retainer & Loader

A problem I saw at Knape & Vogt: loading ball bearings into drawer slide retainers by hand. I reverse-engineered the retainer (AEGIS-001) and am leading a club team designing a loader for it.

Retainer
Measured the original with calipers, modeled it in SolidWorks, and released a dimensioned drawing to ASME Y14.5 for a 3D-printed ABS version holding 36 Ø4.5 mm chrome steel balls.
Rev B
Added retention hooks and increased wall thickness after the first release.
Loader
Hopper-fed, stepper-driven concept that indexes balls into the retainer. Demo planned for December 2026.
SolidWorksASME Y14.5Reverse engineering3D printingMechanism design
Workstation before redesign
Before
Workstation after redesign with hoppers and tilt decks
After
Challenge Manufacturing · 2025

Assembly Workstation Redesign

Redesigned a high-volume automotive assembly station to cut wasted operator movement. Replaced a problem inventory setup with component hoppers and tilt decks so parts come to the operator.

Steps
6 fewer steps per cycle, over 11,500 per shift (about 1.5 miles of walking a day).
Output
About 20% higher station productivity with a 10-week payback.
People
Freed operator time for other work without adding headcount.
SolidWorksLeanErgonomicsMaterial flow
Yellow steel handrail installed on shipping dock stairs
Knape & Vogt · 2026

Shipping Dock Handrail Replacement

Designed a replacement handrail in SolidWorks to meet OSHA 1910.29, optimized ASTM A500 Grade B stock lengths to cut waste, and coordinated in-house fabrication. Saved $9,000 compared with a contracted install.

SolidWorksOSHA 1910.29Structural steelCost analysis
Knape & Vogt · 2026

Assembly Substation Downtime Fix

Traced an 18 minute per shift bottleneck to aging sensors and worn part-nest tooling. Replaced the sensors and remade the nests for about $950 in parts.

Root cause analysisSensorsTooling
Knape & Vogt · 2026

Safety & Fatigue Reduction

Led a $30,000 initiative: wrote startup, shutdown, changeover, LOTO, and standard work instructions, and designed tote stands and ergonomic workstations in SolidWorks.

Standard workLOTOErgonomics
02

Experience

May to Aug 2026

Manufacturing Engineering Intern

Knape & Vogt Manufacturing · Grand Rapids, MI
  • Fixed an 18 minute per shift downtime bottleneck on an assembly substation by replacing aging sensors and remaking part-nest tooling.
  • Designed an OSHA 1910.29 shipping dock handrail for in-house fabrication, saving $9,000 versus a contracted install.
  • Led a $30,000 safety and fatigue-reduction initiative covering standard work, LOTO, and ergonomic workstation design.
  • Mapped 34 forklift routes in a DraftSight spaghetti diagram the team used to plan a floor layout change.
  • Designed flat and bent sheet metal parts for an Amada punch/laser combination machine within its turret tooling limits.
Mar to Jun 2026

Mechanical Engineer (Contract)

Waste2Nano · Remote
  • Thermal and hydraulic analysis and Fusion 360 modeling for a trailer-mounted waste heat recovery system.
  • Built the component BOM and selected pumps, piping, and electrical hardware.
Jun to Aug 2025

Manufacturing Engineering Intern

Challenge Manufacturing · Walker, MI
  • Redesigned an assembly workstation with hoppers and tilt decks, raising productivity about 20%.
  • Worked with controls engineers to improve PLC sequences, reducing downtime and improving throughput.
  • Analyzed robotic weld cell cycle-time data and presented bottleneck fixes to engineering leadership.
  • Added Red Rabbit error-proofing and 5S checks to daily operations.
Jan 2021 to Sep 2024

Production Supervisor

Challenge Manufacturing · Walker, MI
  • Ran production on automated SPR weld cells with Corporate Engineering, covering part quality and process validation.
  • Built 5S part presentation systems and visual controls that cut search time on the line.
  • Worked with maintenance on electrical and mechanical faults, using root-cause analysis to prevent repeat downtime.
  • Tracked scrap trends and put corrective actions in place to improve first-pass yield.
03

About

I grew up working on a farm, where I spent 11 years repairing and running tractors. I worked construction installing siding, then spent three years supervising production at Challenge Manufacturing. Working next to the engineers there is what sent me back to school.

I want to work in product engineering and design things that last, not things built to wear out. Long term, I'm interested in defense and aerospace.

B.S. Mechanical EngineeringGrand Valley State University · transferring after summer 2027
A.S. EngineeringGrand Rapids Community College · expected May 2027 · GPA 3.97
Chase with the Knape & Vogt engineering team
With the Knape & Vogt engineering team, summer 2026

CAD & Design

SolidWorks (CSWA)DraftSightAutoCADFusion 360GD&TTechnical drawings3D printing

Manufacturing

Lean / 6SKaizenStandard workLOTOPlant layoutSheet metal / punch-laserTime studies

Controls & Analysis

PLC troubleshooting (Allen-Bradley)PythonSPCTolerance analysisExcelCost justificationSpaghetti diagramsDowntime analysis

Hands-on

Equipment repairWoodworking / cabinetryConstruction
04

Leadership

AEGIS logo Founder & President

AEGIS Engineering Society, GRCC

Founded the Applied Engineering and Guided Innovation Society to connect community college engineering students with industry through hands-on projects and plant tours.

Visit the AEGIS page →

Club Lead

Rotaract, GRCC

Run GRCC's Rotaract club under the Grand Rapids Rotary, coordinating volunteer work with West Michigan nonprofits.

05

Contact

Emailchase.kramermi@gmail.com
LinkedInlinkedin.com/in/chase-kramer
LocationCoopersville, Michigan