More than Lines, A Look Into What it Takes To Build

On this episode of the Tech Times Podcast we talk with Drafting and Design Instructors Lee Turner and Michael Doering. Learn what it takes to bring ideas to life and how chance brought them both to the classroom.

Transcript

Announcer: From Tulsa Tech, helping you make your own path with insights and information about the world of career training, the Tech Times Podcast starts right now. 

Ryan Williams (Host): Hey, everybody. Welcome to the Tech Times podcast. I'm your host, Ryan Williams. From lines to finished products, drafters, take the technical and make it come to life.

Ryan Williams (Host): These creative wizards of the pen and mouse help create everything from buildings to products we all use every day here to talk all things. Drafting and design are our two instructors, Mr. Michael Doering. Mr. Lee Turner. Guys, welcome to the podcast. 

Michael Doering: Thank you for having us. 

Lee Turner: Thank you. It's great to be here.

Ryan Williams (Host): Let's start with you, Lee. If I've never been exposed to this field, how would you define what drafting and design is? 

Lee Turner: Drafting is taking someone's idea, putting it down on paper with a technical drawing, complete with dimensions so that it can be built. You know, everything in our world is three dimensional.

Lee Turner: It needs to be built. So we help students, , learn how to create technical drawings, , and that's what drafting is. . And some people call it making blueprints of houses. 

Ryan Williams (Host): Okay. Michael, you have anything to add? 

Michael Doering: Yeah, so we, we just take what someone has an idea and, and we put it into the computer as a model, and then from that model we are able to apply standards and create technical drawings.

Ryan Williams (Host): Very cool. Lee, this is a two year program, correct? So what are the biggest skills or concepts you focus on to get them started in year one? 

Lee Turner: At the beginning, we concentrate on multi-view drawings and technical sketching. And so what we do is we take the three dimensional, view , of a part, and then we want to help them learn how to draw that on a two dimensional flat piece of paper.

Lee Turner: And we have them show primarily right now in the beginning, the top view, the front view. And the right side view of the object. And that way they start to understand how to represent that 3D object on a two dimensional plane. . And then, , we do that through technical sketching. We do that through some, manual drafting, , skills and drawing.

Lee Turner: And then of course we end up in the computer software. And all of those concepts, remain the same no matter what, tools you're using with the sketching, the manual drafting or the computer. And so helping 'em with that, visualization skills of how to, how to draw on a two dimensional, 

Ryan Williams (Host): is that a challenge for most students to take that from A 3D to back to 2D, 

Lee Turner: you know, um.

Lee Turner: I would say a lot, maybe, but a lot of them nowadays, you know, they live in a 3D world. We all live in a 3D world. But with them playing their video games, I think. That that actually is a positive because they're so used to seeing a 3D world so much and a lot of 'em also play Minecraft, and so that helps them too, I think, with their visualization skills.

Ryan Williams (Host): Do you think the advancements in gaming has actually helped that? Cause, you know, you know you used to be pong, you know?

Lee Turner: I know, that's for sure. Yeah, I think it has in some students. I really think it is helped them be able to visualize better. Uh, and so yeah, I think it has some 

Ryan Williams (Host): define for me, uh, technical sketch as opposed to doodling.

Lee Turner: So I think a technical sketch is something that, has to do with the engineering world, but it's also something that is, we've got it on grid paper. It. And, we've, we're doing the actual, like I said, those views as far as the, the front, top and right side view we're, it's not just a a free hand, it's a free hand sketch, but it's a little tighter in that we want the lines to be a little straighter and we want to make it look a little more.

Lee Turner: , Not as free willing as a sketch might look. 

Ryan Williams (Host): Something that highlights the full dimensions of, 

Lee Turner: yeah, the end, really the shape of it more. 

Ryan Williams (Host): Okay, gotcha. 

Lee Turner: And then, yeah, the shape of it. 

Ryan Williams (Host): So Michael, then, by the time that students reach you in year two, how do things shift? What kinds of projects and tools do they get to start working with?

Michael Doering: Yeah, so I'm very fortunate. Mr. Turner does a great job with the fundamentals or the foundation of drafting, and so I get to take that into industry. So we look at manufacturing civil. Piping and architecture, and each one of those has a specific software behind each industry. And so I'm kind of showing them how to apply their drafting skills to a software that's industry specific.

Ryan Williams (Host): How do you two coordinate to make sure students have a smooth transition from year one to year two? 

Michael Doering: So I would say that the. The transition comes from, I, I kind of step back and kind of go over some of those. I, I say like dust off the AutoCAD and then I bring them back into, whether it be SolidWorks or Revit or, some of the, the Plant 3D, civil 3D, those kind of softwares.

Ryan Williams (Host): You guys have a large makerspace between the two classrooms. It's pretty cool to come see. What kinds of software and equipment do students get to use? 

Michael Doering: Yeah, so this makerspace is, kind of there to push their abilities to, to critically think. And so they're using these softwares to come up with these three dimensional objects, but then to actually take it into practice.

Michael Doering: And so with the CNC or the 3D printer, the laser, they, they're. Having to cut something and, and Find out the why behind why tolerances exist. Right. Like, , if you make something at the exact same size and they quickly find out that it doesn't go together. . Yeah. 

Ryan Williams (Host): So, yeah, tell me more a little bit about that.

Ryan Williams (Host): Like what, what do you mean? Like, it's almost like a puzzle. 

Michael Doering: Yeah. So, we talk about g, d and T and manufacturing and so understanding how objects go together and like, not all things, the tolerances in which the laser cuts is very precise. Whereas, um, some of these other things where the, it's a glorified wood shop that we have basically here.

Michael Doering: They're having to figure out how things go together and why we have to put the different. Technical standards behind what we do. 'cause they, they, they find out in reality that gravity exists. Right. Like yeah. 

Ryan Williams (Host): Right. And it doesn't stop. 

Michael Doering: Yeah. Um, 

Ryan Williams (Host): I heard an acronym in there. GDT. 

Michael Doering: Yes. Geometric dimension intolerance.

Michael Doering: So. How a machine is kind of, there's datums in which a part is made in in the 3D world, and so that whenever you take it over to A CNC, they understand where those planes are coming from and which they need to cut from. 

Ryan Williams (Host): Very cool. Lee, how do you balance teaching traditional drafting skills with newer digital design methods?

Lee Turner: What I do is we have one chapter on that technical sketching I spoke of, and then the next chapter in chapter three, we use. The manual drafting tools and the board. And so, , then what happens is, is, , once we get into using the AutoCAD tool . Everything that they've learned in those first two chapters is going to apply when they're using the software because it, I'm, I'm helping them learn the drafting principles.

Lee Turner: And the way the softwares are designed and built is that it's using all that terminology like, you know, points and lines and, and tendencies and offsets and things like that. And so, . Once we get into AutoCAD, we use it primarily for the remainder of the time with me. But when we get into architectural drafting, a little introduction, , I'll have

Lee Turner: another assignment or two where they have to go back to the drafting table and they create a floor plan using those tools again, because in architecture there's still a lot of, , architectural designs and architects today that lay out their designs on paper, whether it be sketching or whether they get the drafting table out and they do their designs, , with the manual drafting tools.

Lee Turner: . That's, and then they're able to take that and then give it to, , one of our students, a drafter, and then they're able to. To, put that in the computer software form. 

Ryan Williams (Host): Wow. That's so, 

Lee Turner: so we kind of, we kind of balanced out. 

Ryan Williams (Host): Is that a generational thing almost? Its just the kind of the older skillset set?

Lee Turner: It can be. It can be. That's where I've seen it a lot. . But have you seen any of the younger generation, Mr. Doering use any anymore? The, the manual drafting ways of any architects, any younger architects, or is it primarily in the computer? 

Michael Doering: I would say the computer's really kind of advanced enough that the, the, the board's really technical sketches is what he was talking about.

Michael Doering: Sure. Those still happen every day, everywhere. But the days of breaking out the board and actually finding the tangent of an arc, , those I have not seen in a few years. 

 Commercial: Right. We allow the computer to do that math for us. 

Lee Turner: We do allow the computer to do, do that. Thank you. , But we do have the, we have the scenario where a student hired out.

Lee Turner: With a, with an architect, and they did, I think they were doing a lot of remodels. And so the, the, generational, , before the generation, before us architect, I'm not gonna say the old guy. He would, , but that's how he learned it. He would make changes and modifications on paper for, for the drafter, and then our drafter would take it and then draw it in the computer.

Lee Turner: That's just how he did it. But it really worked out well because they blended those two together. 

Ryan Williams (Host): Teamwork makes the dream work, right? Michael, what certifications or credentials can students earn while enrolled, and how do these help them secure employment? 

Michael Doering: So we actually have seven that we, we take in the, the, the two year program.

Michael Doering: , The first is in from Mr. Turner's class. , They take a, a CAD competency or CAD technician, , where just. Those things that he was talking about, , basic views and how to create views. , And then there's also an AutoCAD, . Certification. They also take an inventor certification, possibly. In Mr.

Michael Doering: Turner's class. And when they come to me, they have some more software specific certifications. SolidWorks and Revit, , are the two that they'll set. And then we have some state competency exams, one for manufacturing architecture, and, sorry, the CAD technician. . , And then is that seven? I've lost them.

Lee Turner: Yeah. There's a lot of them. 

Michael Doering: There's a lot. So that's great. 

Ryan Williams (Host): That's great. Hey Michael, would you, , do us the favor and, and define CAD for us? Just 'cause it's, it's one of those industry acronyms, 

Michael Doering: so it is a little confusing 'cause there's CAD and then there's CADD. And so for CAD, it's computer aided drafting, whereas CADD is computer aided drafting and design.

Michael Doering: And so design is the element of. Putting that critical thinking behind the drafting, and that's why we are the drafting and design program. 

Ryan Williams (Host): Gotcha. So what, what types of critical thinking would be advanced beyond the design or beyond the drafting part of it? 

Michael Doering: So when a, , say a student receives a technical drawing, right?

Michael Doering: They're putting it into the software. They're having to think about how things go together, right? And that critical thinking happens then. So they have what they think it is, and then they put it in the computer and the computer tells 'em that, well, that really can't go together that way. And so they're having to critically think on how to solve that problem all the way through.

Michael Doering: Is that typically a math problem? There is some math, but the computer does a lot of the math for us. So , yes. 

Ryan Williams (Host): Do students participate in career tech student organizations? 

Michael Doering: Yes. We just went to fall leadership this last couple weeks. , Both the adults in high school, and then obviously we're gonna have, in the spring we'll have our competitions.

Ryan Williams (Host): Which career tech student organization do your students participate in? 

Michael Doering: We compete in Skills, USA, 

Ryan Williams (Host): skills. USA. Okay. Yeah. Have you guys had a lot of, uh, state and national, , competitors in over the last couple of years? 

Michael Doering: This last year we were very fortunate. Mr. Turner and I both got to go to nationals. Mr.

Michael Doering: Turner had a student competing in related technical math, and then I got to take some students that actually are with me this year, for engineering technology and design. 

Ryan Williams (Host): Very cool. , Very cool. Are there any student projects that always impress you or showcase what's possible in the field? 

Lee Turner: I've, one project I do in the, in the, this lab here, the fab lab.

Lee Turner: For our students is when we're studying a little bit of architecture. , In the first year they don't come in here as much, , just because of the curriculum and what it lends itself to. But, what I do with this lab and to showcase is, they will create a cardboard model of a little guest cottage technical drawing that they do, and then also of a cabin project that they do.

Lee Turner: In their, architectural study. And, that's what we use it most for in our first year class. 

Ryan Williams (Host): That's pretty cool. 

Michael Doering: So I'm always impressed with what students come up with. They this, at the end of the program is the capstone and they get to choose kind of building up their portfolio. And so that's what this space is, kind of lends it toward.

Michael Doering: Lends toward is the, this capstone piece where it's up to the individual. And if you look around, there's some pieces in here that are from previous students' capstones. There's a grandfather clock that was cut outta wood. There's also some guitars. The students always see the guitars and they're like, I'm gonna make a guitar.

Michael Doering: And so we, we make some guitars. , There's a large, . Lawn Connect four that some students have done, they had to figure out the mechanism as well. , Those kind of projects. But we get projects, , just like the students that went to nationals, , that are real world. , So the Tulsa County Sheriff's Department came and said, Hey, we've got a drone unit and we need to provide power to this drawer.

Michael Doering: And so. We worked with Tulsa County Sheriff's Department to power up drones as they're driving around. . And so the students worked with not only obviously drafting students, but they got with welding, and they also got with, , collision refinishing, , or just refinishing, excuse me, to make a functional product for.

Michael Doering: It, it's out in industry now. . Like they, the sheriff's department is using this and they're gonna make some more of them. 

Ryan Williams (Host): I love those cross program collaboration efforts. . You know, where we, you know, bring in welding, drafting, , refinishing as you mentioned. And those kinds of projects are always really fun to see the outcomes.

Ryan Williams (Host): Right? 

Michael Doering: And once you do it, once it. It kind of opened up a door. They're wanting, um, an a ED station, I guess in a car fitment. We're kind of doing like custom fitting of cars now. And then, 

Ryan Williams (Host): , What is the career outlook for our students coming outta this program? 

Michael Doering: It's great. , So a lot of students are going, it's, it's all over.

Michael Doering: Like the options are so limitless, like the, . I have students I just finished up follow up. They are going into structural engineering, , as a designer. , Architecture companies. They went to, , heating and air conditioning, like they're working for that kind of company. They're working for. There's, there's currently a job today was, , for a CAD person to work at the Port of Catoosa.

Michael Doering: Kind of that kind of stuff is, yeah, it, it's everywhere. It piping oil and gas. , Civil has been pretty thick here . For a while. . , And so, it's been great for 'em. 

Ryan Williams (Host): What kind of qualities or interests do you think make someone likely to thrive in this field? 

Michael Doering: Attention to detail. . Yeah.

Michael Doering: And networking is the other one. I think if you can network very well and have a great attention to detail, you'll thrive in this field. . 

Ryan Williams (Host): Lee, what do you think? 

Lee Turner: Yeah, I would, I would agree with that. And, you know, critical thinking is everywhere in our world, but critical thinking is, is really good.

Lee Turner: And also the willingness to learn and ask a lot of questions are, you know, and, that would, that's a, that's a big plus for, . The employers tell us and talk to us about for this, for this field, 

Ryan Williams (Host): when we held our Thursday afternoon, , program, tour visits. What's your 15 second pitch? How do you guys sell the program?

Lee Turner: And so they, they'll come to me, you know, since they're gonna enter to my class first, I, take 'em and talk to 'em. So I tell them that we're gonna help you learn how to create. Technical drawings in, in the first class. And then I show them examples and then, I talk to 'em about those three mediums that we're gonna use.

Lee Turner: . The technical sketching, the, the manual drafting tools, and then the AutoCAD. And then, , then I talk to 'em about after drafting one, you can, you could possibly go out and get an, an inter, you know, an internship. Between taking my class and then taking Mr. Doering class. 

Ryan Williams (Host): Oh, how cool. And so, uh, definitely get some more industry experience.

Lee Turner: Yeah. Yeah. They, they really can. And they can, it, it's great if they could do that, and some have in the past. And so that's what I talked to them about. And then I usually turn 'em over to Mr. Doering and he tells 'em about his program. 

Michael Doering: Yeah, just kind of break down those different industries, showing them kind of the sum some of the projects that they'll be working on in, in each of the disciplines.

Ryan Williams (Host): So like the guitars, 

Michael Doering: not necessarily the, the guitars are always eye catching, but yeah. More of like the, the Revit model and the SolidWorks projects. There's a jack stand that they draw up, and then there's, we, we actually survey around here in the civil portion. We, go out and calculate the area of the pond and the slope of the, the parking lot, using surveying tools and then, and, and the piping, , I showed them we do an entire deprobinizing plant.

Michael Doering: And so those are, 

Ryan Williams (Host): you're gonna have to define that one for me. Yeah. 

Michael Doering: So I don't even know all the technical terms behind it all, but it is, it's got tanks and vessels and pipes and nozzles and pumps and support and foundation, and. It all goes together, 

Ryan Williams (Host): okay. , I have a vision in my head of something underground, but I, I would guess it doesn't have to be, 

Michael Doering: , Most of it is above ground, so it's above ground pipe rack and, , it's just more about teaching, , terminology I would say, and then a little bit of the software as well.

Ryan Williams (Host): Very cool. We're gonna take a quick break. When we come back, we're gonna dive into both of your pass and what led you both to Tulsa Tech.

 Commercial: Did you know career tech trains Oklahoma's Essential Workforce 

 Commercial: or that Career Tech is Oklahoma's leader for earn while you learn apprenticeship opportunity? 

 Commercial: Did you know career tech programs are low to no cost educational path or 

 Commercial: that career tech can help you learn by doing?

 Commercial: So when Oklahoma needs us, we'll, ready? Ready.

Ryan Williams (Host): Welcome back everyone. We are here chatting with our drafting and design instructors, Mr. Lee Turner. Mr. Michael Doering. Before the break, we talked a lot about the program guys. Now we wanna get to know you a little bit better. So can each of you share what drew you to the world of drafting and design 

Lee Turner: back in high school?

Lee Turner: You know, we, we, um, we have a class where you're kind of like the foundations we have these days. Where you're kind of exploring a little bit. And I actually thought that I might go into welding. We had had a class in high school where we did a little bit welding and, you know, I did pretty good at it.

Lee Turner: And then I was talking to an uncle , and he, I told him about, you know, what I was thinking about doing with welding. He said, well. I guess he had seen, I'm not an artist, but he had seen some stuff I did in art class, some of my drawings and things. He said, well, have you ever thought of drafting? And my uncle, he's, he's an engineer, but not an engineer.

Lee Turner: If that makes sense. So he worked for companies where he saw a lot of plans and everything. So he said, have you ever thought of drafting? I said, no, I haven't. And so I investigated a little bit and I ended up my junior and senior year in high school. Taking a drafting, course at, central Tech over in Drumright, Oklahoma.

Ryan Williams (Host): How awesome. 

Lee Turner: And so that's how I got into, , doing drafting. 

Ryan Williams (Host): Do you still hold any of those welding skills? 

Lee Turner: , I don't know. I haven't done welding since probably way back then. I know. 

Ryan Williams (Host): Oh man. We have one on campus here. You could go try out. Yeah, I like. 

Lee Turner: Okay. That's not for me. 

Ryan Williams (Host): Michael, what about you?

Michael Doering: So my passion actually started when I was, in first grade.

Michael Doering: I had a teacher that said, Hey, you're really good at math. You're either gonna be an architect or an engineer. And I, at the time, I thought the only engineer I knew was trains. And I was like, I don't like trains. I'm gonna be an architect. And so that started my, my. Path down, becoming an architect. And when it came to about sophomore year, I came, or I guess tech came to my school and said.

Michael Doering: Would you like to take drafting if, if you're passionate about architecture? , Back then you had actually had to do an interview process with a counselor, , that came to our school and I said, yeah, I really want to do architecture. And they said, well, drafting is what you should take. And that's what I did.

Michael Doering: I came and took drafting here at Tulsa Tech and I was actually in Mr. Turner's very first class. A few years ago, and then I went on and got my, , degree in architecture and at the end of the day I was a glorified drafter. And you know how all things worked out. I, I found that this was actually what I was designed for.

Michael Doering: So. 

Ryan Williams (Host): Well, how did your, how did that path lead you to teaching here at Tulsa Tech? 

Michael Doering: So the previous instructor had reached out to me and said, Hey, I'm retiring. I'd like for you to take my position. And I, I was like. I can't take that judgment from those high school. It was only high school at the time. I was like, there's no way I could do that.

Michael Doering: Like, and so I closed the door actually, and, and, so when I closed the, he was there for, I don't, I know. Close to 40 years, I guess. And so when I closed that door, I thought it was a pretty hard close. And then about a year and a half goes by and some things had happened, and I had a friend that reached out and says, Hey, did you, have you checked out Tulsa Tech?

Michael Doering: I said, well, I did about a year and a half ago. And I, I thought I closed that door pretty good. He is like, well, what was it? And he said, drafting. And he's like, oh, they just posted that today. I was like, okay, all right. I better apply. And so I did. And it was, it is been the best thing ever. So. 

Ryan Williams (Host): Well, I'm glad it worked out.

Lee Turner: Yeah, same. So after I attended , high school, I ended up going to NSU in Tahlequah and I was going over there to play soccer. 'cause I was a soccer, , player. That was my main focus. But then they also had a drafting and design degree back then. And so I ended up, that's what my major was. I had a minor in math.

Lee Turner: And then once I figured out I wasn't gonna be, a professional soccer player. I ended up, well, I was gonna take drafting anyway, the point is I got my drafting and design degree and I got out and graduated and I ended up, working in the industry for various companies, doing different types of drafting for about 11 years.

Lee Turner: And so how I came to be, teaching here was this. I was working for a company and I loved what I was doing and they loved me. What I was doing, it was for a civil engineering company, but I started getting a little, I had been there about six, almost seven years, and I started feeling a little, , antsy.

Lee Turner: Like, , maybe I could do something else or something in addition to. What I had already been doing. There were some times when I got out to go to the field and do that. But there were some times when you were sitting behind the desk a lot, 

Ryan Williams (Host): did some of it feel kind of routine at that point? 

Lee Turner: It felt a little routine at times.

Lee Turner: Yeah. Yeah. And then you started looking at, well, where am I gonna cap out? Not only in moving through the company, but also salary and that kind of thing. And so what I ended up doing was I thought, well, I'm just gonna look around a little bit, you know, what do I what? What is it that's kind of making me think about this?

Lee Turner: And so. Then one Sunday afternoon, my wife was looking in the, in the, ads in the Tulsa world, and we'd been talking about this and she said, well, have you ever thought about teaching drafting? 

Lee Turner: , Similar to what Mr. Doering said, you know, they posted it in the, in the newspaper. I said, well, I don't know, maybe.

Lee Turner: So the teaching experience I had had in my life up to that point was this at work. There were times when I was meeting with a coworker and we were talking about a project, and I would show them things in cad. There was other times when, , you know, I was doing a certain, , part of the project and, and I would be teaching them that, or some of the guys who had, , been around a little longer than me and they, they knew enough cad, but then.

Lee Turner: They were learning some new things. , They, they'd asked me questions and I'd come over and help 'em. So I was doing some teaching that way. And then other than that, I just had some experience in teaching in a, in a classroom, maybe some Bible classes here and there. So no really formal training though in teaching, but it just felt like I had some natural ability.

Ryan Williams (Host): Sure. Have you, have you ever pulled the teacher card on Michael here? 

Lee Turner: No. No. I don't know if I have. Maybe. 

Michael Doering: I don't think so. I don't think so. 

Lee Turner: And so, , yeah, so it. Kinda like Michael. It kind of, I said, I don't know, I'll check it out. Got my resume ready, , submitted it and a, and about a month later when I thought, well, maybe I, or two weeks later when maybe I should follow up, then Tulsa Tech called me.

Ryan Williams (Host): Very cool. 

Lee Turner: And so that's kind of how I got here. And I know Mr. Doering had a similar story about kind of feeling called to come and teach. 

Ryan Williams (Host): That's such, it's weird how life comes full circle sometimes and Yeah. Really brings you to the right place. 

Lee Turner: Yeah, it does. Yeah. Um, 

Ryan Williams (Host): Lee, what's the most rewarding part of teaching first year students who are just starting out?

Lee Turner: The most rewarding thing to me is as we're, as I'm taking 'em through that journey, is to just to see them start to understand it. You know, the light bulbs coming on. 

Lee Turner: . That's the biggest moment for me. Or when they learn something new. In the software and they, they share it and they're teaching it with others.

Lee Turner: We encourage students to help one another when you can to network with one another. 

Ryan Williams (Host): Do you hear that little buzz in the classroom? Like when somebody figures something out and they're sharing it around? 

Lee Turner: Yeah. Yeah. And sometimes they'll come to us and say, Mr. Turner, how do you, I said, well, one second, why don't you go have so and so help you with that, or, so and so did that.

Lee Turner: Hey, would you come over and help them and show 'em that? And just kind of see what happens. 

Ryan Williams (Host): Yeah, it's cool to have a different voice sometimes. I noticed that with my kid, you know, , my son all the time, you know, we'd be telling him stuff for years and then. A teacher would come along and tell 'em the same exact thing and boom, it clicks it and you're like, okay, cool.

Ryan Williams (Host): Whatever. So Michael, how about you? What's most fulfilling about guiding students through until they graduate? 

Michael Doering: So the neat thing is, I think for me it was whenever we've gone on trips, field trips to different industries, and you see your alum, the alumni in the job market , running into 'em, you're like, .

Michael Doering: Oh my. It's so great seeing alumni when you're out in the industry. , But then just like Mr. Turner was saying, is whenever you see students take a project and take ownership of it and just drive it the rest of the way, and then you just kind of guide them through it, is, is a really rewarding, , feeling.

Ryan Williams (Host): I'm sure those interactions with alumni out in the field also kind of spark a little something in the current students as they see, oh man, there's somebody here that. Was in my class 

Michael Doering: and, and then I think it was Aaon is where we were. , every cubicle we turned around is like another student that had taken the, the program and we're like, I didn't know that there, like some of, from my very first students to like current, like just, just graduated, students are are all there and it's like, that's really cool to see like that many students are .

Michael Doering: In one place. 

Ryan Williams (Host): It is really cool when you're wearing a shirt or something and you go out into the community and, yeah. Find all kinds of connections. . That way. . How do you guys keep your own skills current in such a fast changing industry? 

Michael Doering: For me, I'm a licensed architect, and I, I do practice architecture, so I, it's nothing more than being in the field and doing, 

Ryan Williams (Host): would you consider that a side hustle?

Michael Doering: It's a night hustle. 

Ryan Williams (Host): Oh, okay. I gotcha. Yeah, definitely. 

Lee Turner: So, you know, when the new software comes out, 'cause it's, it's constantly changing. , I'll get in there and, and use that. A lot of times I'll resource other, you know, , YouTube and things like that. A lot of times when the software comes out, they'll, they'll make videos and say, and say, here's the, here's what's new.

Lee Turner: And so we might, might watch some of that and , but other than that, the biggest thing I think is when we do those industry visits or we have. Or we have a guest speaker that comes in and talks about what they're doing in their industry and, shows us things in the software. 

 Commercial: And we have advisory groups that help .

 Commercial: , Help us build the curriculum for this program as well. And I'm sure they come in and help us, help guide us as to what's current. 

Lee Turner: Yes. 

Michael Doering: Yeah, we're gonna have our, uh, industry partnership dinner this next week. , And so we're looking forward to catching up with the industry and kind of having their input on our program.

 Commercial: What's a common misconception you guys hear about the field and that you wanna dispel today? 

Lee Turner: So gonna, so what I'm gonna share is this, , you know, what is drafting. Okay. , You remember Jay Leno when Jay Leno would go out on the streets and he would ask questions of people and say, what is this?

Lee Turner: And they would give their definition, , if you go out and did that with the population, what is drafting? The number one answer is making blueprints of houses. 

Ryan Williams (Host): Really? 

Lee Turner: Yeah. That's the number one answer. Okay. Based on my survey over 24 years of teaching and you know, that kind of thing. 

Ryan Williams (Host): I'll remember that on Family Feud.

Lee Turner: Yeah. There you go. And when students come into our program and I'm talking to 'em, why do you want to take drafting? The majority of them will say, oh, I want to design houses and I wanna do architecture, and I wanna be an architect. That's it. 'cause that's, that's just 'cause the most common thing. That's what they see a lot of TV and that sort of thing.

Lee Turner: Sure. Until Big Bang Theory came along, who knew what a physicist was or who knew what engineering and that kind of thing was . Nobody knows what a civil engineer is. But the point is, is that. That's what you get most of all. And so drafting is a lot more than just making blueprints of houses, and that's what we're trying to expose them to.

Lee Turner: And then sometimes I'm not, I'm gonna let Mr. Doering comment as well, but, and sometimes they start out with thinking, oh, I wanna do architecture. But by the time they get exposed to different things, some of 'em have a change of mind or a change of hearts. Sure. And so that's what we're trying to help 'em with.

Ryan Williams (Host): I'm sure you guys see that every year. We see that a lot. Yeah. Yeah. 

Michael Doering: I think I even got the bug whenever I started teaching is like SolidWorks, this is incredible. Like, you know, I, my whole life has been architecture and then you get into a manufacturing parts and stuff like that, and I'm like, you can literally make anything.

Michael Doering: And you know, that's kind of become a like. Uh, I think I like SolidWorks more than I like Revit. 

Ryan Williams (Host): I'm sure you can find stuff like little home projects. You can, anything you can like, oh, I need it. One of them. . Little things for my house project. Oh, let's go ahead and make one of them. Yeah. 

Michael Doering: But as far as the, , misconceptions, I think, .

Michael Doering: I don't know. It might just be terminology, but, , blueprints. , So I, I don't know why I'm stuck on that one so much, but that's the one that comes to my head right now. A blueprint was just a copy of an existing drawing, and, and that's just the term that most people use. But in our industry, we call them tech technical drawings.

Michael Doering: . , And so I don't know. That would be the one misconception or whatever, but . I think that maybe that's 

Ryan Williams (Host): technical drawings. Technical sketches. I'm just, they're, they're different. 

Michael Doering: Different, they are different. So a technical sketch is that of like a, a free hand drawing that has technical dimensions and all that where a technical drawing is produced by the computer with the, the correct.

Michael Doering: Standards and, formatting and all that kinda stuff. That makes sense. That would be a technical drawing. 

Ryan Williams (Host): That makes sense. Sketch versus drawing. Got it. Yeah. 

Lee Turner: Over the, you can tell that I always call myself a recovering OCD person. Yeah. , So I've learned over the years what to let go of and what to not.

Lee Turner: So a lot of times if they, well, I mean like we may need some guidance here on that. I know. The point is, is that when students say making blueprints of houses, I don't react. . Today, like I did back in the day about that. . We were a little more gentle about it and explain it better. Yeah. That's part of drafting.

Lee Turner: . We're trying to help them learn. 

Michael Doering: Yeah. Blueprint machine has not, like he had one, I don't know, as an archive thing, I guess. 

Lee Turner: We used to use a, a blueprint machine long time ago, but we 

Michael Doering: have, we let it go. In all of my career, I've never seen a blueprint machine in industry, so anyway. 

Lee Turner: Yep. 

Ryan Williams (Host): Um, what is your favorite part about working here at Tulsa Tech Lee?

Lee Turner: Oh, wow. There's a lot of favorite parts, but, , I think my favorite part about working here and teaching, this is the only place I've ever taught, , but is the, , freedom to run my classroom the way that I see fit as it relates to. How the students are gonna experience the workplace. 

Ryan Williams (Host): Michael, what about you?Favorite part about working at Tulsa 

Ryan Williams (Host): Tech? 

Michael Doering: I, I think I got the best job. Mr. Turner does the hard work of teaching the fundamentals and then I get to have all the fun and teach all the software. There's also some great coworkers here and so, , I'm excited to come to work every day and, and teach. 

Ryan Williams (Host): Well, thank you both for sharing with us all of the things about drafting design today.

Ryan Williams (Host): , We appreciate you being on the Tech Times podcast. 

Announcer: Thank you for listening to the Tech Times Podcast. Be sure to subscribe so you don't miss an episode. And be sure to like us on social media.