Savannah River National Laboratory-Packaging Technology Organization's Collaboration with Students in their Senior Design Class in the Mechanical Engineering Department at the University of South Carolina

For the past five years, the Savannah River National Laboratory and the University of South Carolina have been in a mentor-student affiliation. This affiliation is between students enrolled in the mechanical engineering senior design course and the Packaging Technology organization at the Savannah River National Laboratory. This cooperative effort has been utilized to give the senior-level students a glimpse into the types of regulations, projects, and designs that are typical in modern industry. The association also allows the students to have direct contact with engineers and scientists from one of the Department of Energy’s national laboratories. The Savannah River National Laboratory gains benefit from this association in that the engineers and scientists at the laboratory meet the next professionals that will enter the workforce. The laboratory also gains the value of a collaborative effort in current projects and ongoing organizational performance capabilities.