SkillsUSA Win: Pipeline into Magna
Participating in the 2024 SkillsUSA national competition led to a first-place finish in the robotics and automation technology category for Andrew Cooper – and a great entry-level technical job at Magna’s Kamtek division in Birmingham, Alabama.
His experience underscores the wide array of opportunities available in the skilled trades at Magna – and showcases that advanced manufacturing goes beyond the stereotypical assembly line known to previous generations.
As an assembly maintenance apprentice, Cooper is part of a team that supervises hundreds of robots at the Magna division. He graduated in May 2024 with an associate’s degree in applied science mechatronics from Alabama’s Wallace State Community College.
“Magna is a great way to get started beyond the classroom and the competitions,” said Cooper, who joined the company in May. “I really enjoy learning about the small details of automation, the process and how things are integrated in the plant.”
He adds: “I’m learning to think like a systems engineer.”
"I like the atmosphere here. It’s very uplifting and collaborative."
Magna Mentors
His new job follows a year of big moments defined by interactions with the Magna mentors he met through SkillsUSA, which calls itself the #1 workforce development organization for students.
Like Cooper, several of his mentors started out as Magna apprentices and SkillsUSA competitors, and grew into leadership roles with the company. They are also working diligently with students to attract the best talent to Magna.
During a SkillsUSA district tournament in May, Cooper met Juddson Raia, a maintenance supervisor at the Kamtek division and a 2022 SkillsUSA national winner. Raia gave Cooper advice on what to expect during the eight-hour national competition, along with practical advice on writing programs for the robot during the event.
The challenge during the national tournament was to write a program that directs a robot to pick cubes from a feeder, determine if the part is metal or plastic, and whether it is a quality part. Then, the robot had to place the correct parts in a grid. Cooper’s partner during the competition was Avielle Shadrick, who does not work for Magna.
Before the competition, Cooper applied for a job at Magna, and was hired by Landon Warnock, who had a lot in common with the prospective employee. Warnock is a Magna maintenance manager who placed third in the 2017 SkillsUSA national competition.
An Uplifting Atmosphere
Cooper cultivated his love of engineering by building small robots at home with his father David, a mechanical engineer who has taught at the University of Alabama at Birmingham and works at UAB with NASA.
“The latest robot we’ve made is one that attaches to a whiteboard and can draw shapes with a marker,” he said.
In his professional life, Cooper is shadowing Magna maintenance technicians and “learning the trade” at the facility that makes automotive components for global automakers.
“I like the atmosphere here,” he said. “It’s very uplifting and collaborative, and I’m given a lot of freedom.
“Working in a Magna division is a good idea for anyone seeking higher education. It’s practical and hands-on, especially if you want to be an electrical engineer, but you’ve never had physical experience or seen the inside of a factory. It’s been a great start for me.”
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