Lakshmi “Simhon” Narasimhon (photo), a graduate student pursuing a Masters in Mechanical Engineering at Florida Tech, was named Florida Tech Student Employee of the Year (off-campus) for his exceptional work as a student engineer at DEMACO, a company that designs and builds pasta machines for the largest food companies worldwide.
Simhon worked closely with the sales, engineering and manufacturing teams at to develop floor plans and mechanical assemblies for high capacity pasta systems, both for the dry pasta and fresh/frozen sectors. The recognition noted his professionalism and ability to achieve collaboration, essential skills for success for engineers working on complex projects. On one design, Simhon worked with the Plant Manager at Riviana Foods, makers of Ronzoni Pasta, on a project to enhance a DEMACO dry pasta extruder. Simhon said of the experience, «I learned a tremendous amount about integrating mechanical assemblies into much larger systems. It requires teamwork, as well as accurate and detailed engineering to ensure a good outcome».
John Alberga, Chief Engineer at DEMACO said, «It was a pleasure having Simhon on the team. He listened closely and easily grasped complicated concepts». Simhon will receive his Masters in Mechanical Engineering in August of this year, and plans on joining the DEMACO team full time.
DEMACO has a long history of working with Florida Tech, an engineering and research university in Melbourne.
Over the years, the company has hosted many interns and engineering students, as well as held classes at their facility. DEMACO is also involved with the Space Coast Machinist Apprenticeship Program, a non-profit educational organization that is responsible for training machinists in the Space Coast region of Florida.
