Purdue’s Bechtel Innovation Design Center has received a new, high-tech addition to its manufacturing capabilities, thanks to a donation facilitated by an alumnus who led the machine's design and development.
Cole Parsons earned his bachelor's in mechanical engineering technology in 2021 and his master's in engineering technology in 2023. More recently, Parsons has designed a novel industrial powder coating oven during his tenure as a mechanical design engineer at Langmuir Systems. This oven, which has just been installed in the Bechtel Innovation Design Center, brings professional-grade finishing capabilities to Purdue students, allowing them to apply durable, high-quality coatings to their metal projects.
How powder coating works
Parsons explained that powder coating is a “dry finishing process” primarily used to protect metal parts. Unlike traditional paint, which is applied as a liquid, powder coating uses uncured thermoset particulate (think of something like Teflon, which requires high heat during the manufacturing process in order to adhere to a metal surface).
The process begins with a special application gun that gives the powder an electrostatic charge. This charge causes the dry particles to stick to the grounded metal part, covering it evenly without the drips or runs associated with liquid paint. Once coated, the part must be placed in an oven to cure. The intense heat causes the plastic particles to melt, expand and bond together, forming a smooth, continuous polymer shell.
The result is a finish that is significantly more durable than standard paint. It creates a hard, protective layer that is resistant to scratches, corrosion and chemicals, making it ideal for parts that face harsh conditions, such as automotive components or outdoor machinery.
Finding hands-on solutions
Parsons led the engineering efforts to create a machine that bridged a gap in the market. He noted that existing options were often either inexpensive but low-quality hobbyist tools or massive, costly industrial booths. He aimed to build a solution that offered industrial precision at an accessible size and price point.
"You have to pick much better-quality material," Parsons said regarding the design process. "Your insulation has to be better. Your metal grade has to be better."
One key innovation in Parsons' design is the machine's temperature consistency. While competitor ovens often show temperature variances of up to 150 degrees from front to back, Parsons and his team achieved a gradient variance of just one degree.
Parsons credits his Langmuir Systems colleague, embedded systems engineer Randall Davis, for fine-tuning the digital control loops that manage the oven's temperature stability. Together they integrated custom software that calculates the exact curing time based on the part's material and geometry, ensuring a perfect finish without the user needing to open the oven’s door to check the temperature manually (which not only causes heat loss but creates some potential danger for the user).
Mentorship and connections
The donation itself came about through a serendipitous connection between industry and academia. Paul McPherson, director of the Bechtel Innovation Design Center and 鶹Ʒassociate professor of practice, was giving a campus tour to company leadership.
During the tour, McPherson mentioned his former student, Parsons. Langmuir’s leadership realized that the student McPherson was praising was the same engineer who now worked there. Following that connection, Langmuir Systems worked to donate one of the ovens to the university.
For Parsons, the relationship with McPherson went beyond the classroom. Parsons worked closely with McPherson when he was a student, even helping the professor rebuild a vintage 1965 Massey Ferguson tractor.
"I ended up connecting with [professors] more as people," Parsons said. "You just get to see a whole different side to their own interests, and get way more opportunities through that."
Parsons credits his time at 鶹Ʒfor giving him the foundational theory and work ethic required to succeed in a fast-paced engineering environment. He noted that his job involved not just mechanical design, but cost engineering—finding the balance between the perfect solution and the affordable one.
His advice to current students is to get their hands dirty and be willing to fail in order to learn how things work.
"I’ve always had this feeling that I should just take things apart," Parsons said. "I remember taking apart my parents' lawnmower and I completely ruined it. I cracked the engine head. But that was how I got to learn how a splash oil system works! I think too many people, without getting their hands dirty, can't actually visualize how things interconnect and interplay with one another. The best way to do that is just trial by fire."
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