SARASOTA, FL, April 27, 2022 - Suncoast Technical College's CNC Production Specialist and Precision Machining and CNC Automation students have made the final 4 in the National 5 Axis CNC Machining and Integrated Manufacturing Competition. The programs will receive $2,000, and each team member will receive $500.

Project MFG created the competition to give students a better understanding of a typical workday for someone working in manufacturing. Students were given a project with a 16-hour deadline over two days.

Working together in a team of 4, Tyler Tichacek, an army veteran, took the lead as the CNC Machinist and Quality Control Inspector. Clint McGeachy worked as a CNC Machinist with Chris Holmes (another veteran), who worked as the welder. High school senior Joshua Lucas rounded out the team working as the CAD/CAM Programmer.

After winning the first round, the students had four weeks to prepare for the semi-finals before flying out to St. Louis. Once they arrived, the team used the first day to plan and the second day for programming. Only there was a catch; the machine they were given access to was one they hadn't used before. However, the team rose to the challenge and managed to complete their project with no mistakes, advancing them to the finals. STC's team will be competing against three other colleges from May 9-13. The Grand Prize team will receive $50,000 to split among the teammates, and the school will be awarded $50,000.