AIST Steel Intern Scholarship
Thomas D. Teeters
During my internship at Midrex, I had the opportunity to engage in a wide range of tasks that allowed me to gain valuable experience and contribute to the company’s operations. Midrex is a steel technologies company located in Charlotte, N.C., USA, with plants responsible for over 80% of the worldwide low CO2 direct reduced iron (DRI) produced from shaft furnaces. As a mechanical engineering intern, I was exposed to various aspects of the Midrex process, such as composing equipment specifications, reviewing vendor technical quotes, creating technical bid evaluations for mechanical equipment, attending equipment inspections, and learning about hands-on DRI plant commissioning.
One of my primary responsibilities was creating and editing equipment specifications and requisitions. This involved meticulously documenting the technical requirements for different equipment and comparing the similarities and differences between the current equipment duty and what was used for past projects. Additionally, I had the opportunity to review technical vendor documentation and quotes for equipment. This task required careful evaluation and comparison of vendor offerings to determine the most suitable option, considering both technical and commercial aspects.
To ensure the vendors met these specified requirements, I coordinated with them to qualify their quoted equipment. This involved discussions and negotiations with vendors to ensure their quotes provided the equipment that aligned with our specifications.
I also had the opportunity to attend multiple equipment inspections at vendor shops. During these inspections, I documented the inspection process and prepared comprehensive reports, detailing the inspected components and creating punch lists for action items. This experience allowed me to develop a keen eye for detail and a thorough understanding of quality control processes.
In addition to my involvement in equipment-related tasks, I actively participated in improving mechanical and process errors on piping and instrumentation documents (P&IDs) while learning how to use Bluebeam mark-up software. Through markups on P&IDs, I not only contributed to enhancing accuracy and efficiency in the company’s operations but also gained a better understanding of the Midrex process. I also engaged in collaborative discussions with a group to discuss mark-ups that I and others had made to release more accurate revisions of the P&IDs.
Although much of my internship took place in an office setting or in a vendor’s shop for equipment inspections, one of the highlights of my internship was participating in hands-on start-up procedures at Midrex’s tech center test facility. This involved commissioning a small- scale Midrex plant that aimed to test the process’s feasibility while progressively transitioning the fuel source from natural gas to hydrogen. This experience provided me with practical insights into the operational challenges I am likely to encounter on a field assignment in my career. While working at the tech center, I participated in a plant group walkthrough to track down the physical piping and equipment of the plant and compare it to the P&IDs to find both operation and document errors and create a plan to resolve them.
Overall, my internship at Midrex was a transformative experience as it equipped me with valuable skills that I will carry into my first job out of school. I am very grateful for the opportunity the AIST Foundation gave me to be part of Midrex and learn more about the iron and steel industry.