Overview

In Spring 2020, I hosted my first ever workshop for the Society of Asian Scientists and Engineers (SASE) at Northeastern University. As the Corporate Relations Chair of the organization, my goal was to provide general members opportunities to learn various technical and life skills. With my two certifications and many years of experience in SOLIDWORKS, I decided it was time to share my knowledge and teach others the basics of 3D modeling.

Considerations

I chose to teach the workshop in Fusion 360 since Autodesk has a free trial version, and Northeastern does not provide non-engineers a SOLIDWORKS license. Since I only knew how to use SOLIDWORKS, I learned basic features of Fusion in the weeks leading up to the event. The transition was not as difficult as I anticipated once I learned where to find basic features.

To make the workshop more appealing and rewarding to participants, I wanted them to create something that they can bring home and use. Overall, my goals for this workshop was to:

‣ Learn how to use Fusion 360
‣ Teach 20+ students from various backgrounds the applications of 3D modeling
‣ Introduce basic features such as extrude, cut, loft, and fillet
‣ Create an assembly that is ready to 3D print
‣ Introduce appearances and textures

Challenges

‣ Getting used to Fusion 360 UI and subtle differences in features
‣ Determining what item to model that is printable and functional
‣ Limiting content to a one-hour workshop
‣ Teach and assist 20+ students by myself

Results

‣ All students were able to recreate the model using Fusion 360
‣ 20% of students 3D printed the model for ~$12
‣ Great member turnout and engagement overall
‣ Printed assembly was functional and aesthetic
‣ Documented entire design process