Background
Engineering is an important part of all our lives. Think of all of the new inventions that have made life better and easier – they were designed by engineers! When engineers look at a problem, they think about all possible solutions and then design and test their ideas.
Engineering is also an important part of Lowell’s history. Lowell’s mills made textiles (cloth). The last major step in making textiles is weaving, which is done by a machine called a loom. Year after year, engineers continued to redesign the loom so that it would work faster and more efficient.
Your Challenge
You are a loom engineer and have been hired by Kirk Boott, the owner of the Boott Cotton Mills in Lowell. Mr. Boott is very concerned about the safety of the workers who operate his looms. He is concerned that the looms are noisy and have exposed moving parts and pulleys, and that the room has poor air quality. He has challenged you to come up with solutions that will make the looms safer for the workers who operate them.
Research
- Watch a video to see a room full of power looms. What do you see and hear? What are the workers doing?
- Watch the power looms video again. This time look for the safety problems that Mr. Boott said he was concerned about. What other safety problems can you identify? List all of the safety problems you can see.
Design
- Choose one of the problems from your list. Think about all of the possible solutions. You might want to do some additional research on possible solutions to your problem.
- Draw / write your solutions on the picture of the loom (pdf). Even though this is a drawing of a historic loom, you do not have to limit yourself to historic solutions. Use your imagination – anything is possible!
