Duotech Creates Pipeline for Jobs
Sarah Loeffler, a 2014 graduate, is one of eight Cedarville graduates working at DuoTech.
For one North Carolina firm, Cedarville University graduates are in high demand.
At Duotech, a 30-employee organization that specializes in restoring and reverse engineering obsolete equipment — with an emphasis on aerospace equipment — regularly looks for Cedarville students to complement its workforce. The Franklin, North Carolina, firm currently has eight graduates performing high-end jobs.
Duotech serves many civilian and military agencies and specializes in military aircraft, including F-16s, C-130 Hercules and F-5 Tiger IIs. Duotech takes older models of aircraft and updates them to function as well as newer aircraft models.
The recent graduates are enjoying their careers because they believe their work is making a difference for the company, while also providing properly functioning equipment for many countries’ national defense programs.
Most of the Cedarville-educated employees graduated with a degree in engineering. Brett Rogers, a 2010 graduate, is the exception as he earned a business management degree that he uses to oversee administrative functions. As Vice President of Duotech, Rogers oversees contract administration, logistics and business development processes. Several other alumni majored in electrical engineering —Silas Gibbs, 2004, Daniel Rogers Jr., 2007, Joseph Eisentrager, 2007 and Matthew D’Anna, 2011, and Timothy Tuinstra, 1996. Sarah Loeffler, 2014, earned her degree in mechanical engineering, and Timothy Linden, 2006, graduated with a degree in computer engineering.
Tim Tuinstra, Ph.D., associate professor of electrical engineering and part-time consultant at Duotech, explained that graduates have a unique challenge at Duotech, as they attempt to help customers maintain current systems rather than complete expensive redesigns.
“They have to figure out the processes of how the equipment works and fix the problem, sometimes without knowing how the system was originally designed,” said Tuinstra. “It can be really challenging, but our graduates have been well equipped for the task.”
Loeffler believes her experience through Cedarville’s senior design project helped prepare her for the challenges at Duotech.
“The senior design project was a good taste of what the design process really looks like and what kinds of problems could arise that would need to be overcome,” said Loeffler. “It is one thing to learn a bunch of theorems and formulas and apply them to set problems in a textbook, but it is another to learn how to problem solve and learn how to apply knowledge in a way that will be beneficial.”
Rogers recalled that the critical thinking and hands-on experience at Cedarville was essential to him being successful in his position.
“Classes such as IBC and Advanced Operations Management truly developed my own interpersonal skills in a way that strongly affects how I am able to successfully conduct business at Duotech,” said Rogers.
You can learn more about Duotech and the job opportunities it offers at duotechservices.com/careers.
Located in southwest Ohio, Cedarville University is an accredited, Christ-centered, Baptist institution with an enrollment of 3,711 undergraduate, graduate, and online students in more than 100 areas of study. Founded in 1887, Cedarville is recognized nationally for its authentic Christian community, rigorous academic programs, strong graduation and retention rates, accredited professional and health science offerings, and leading student satisfaction ratings.
At Duotech, a 30-employee organization that specializes in restoring and reverse engineering obsolete equipment — with an emphasis on aerospace equipment — regularly looks for Cedarville students to complement its workforce. The Franklin, North Carolina, firm currently has eight graduates performing high-end jobs.
Duotech serves many civilian and military agencies and specializes in military aircraft, including F-16s, C-130 Hercules and F-5 Tiger IIs. Duotech takes older models of aircraft and updates them to function as well as newer aircraft models.
The recent graduates are enjoying their careers because they believe their work is making a difference for the company, while also providing properly functioning equipment for many countries’ national defense programs.
Most of the Cedarville-educated employees graduated with a degree in engineering. Brett Rogers, a 2010 graduate, is the exception as he earned a business management degree that he uses to oversee administrative functions. As Vice President of Duotech, Rogers oversees contract administration, logistics and business development processes. Several other alumni majored in electrical engineering —Silas Gibbs, 2004, Daniel Rogers Jr., 2007, Joseph Eisentrager, 2007 and Matthew D’Anna, 2011, and Timothy Tuinstra, 1996. Sarah Loeffler, 2014, earned her degree in mechanical engineering, and Timothy Linden, 2006, graduated with a degree in computer engineering.
Tim Tuinstra, Ph.D., associate professor of electrical engineering and part-time consultant at Duotech, explained that graduates have a unique challenge at Duotech, as they attempt to help customers maintain current systems rather than complete expensive redesigns.
“They have to figure out the processes of how the equipment works and fix the problem, sometimes without knowing how the system was originally designed,” said Tuinstra. “It can be really challenging, but our graduates have been well equipped for the task.”
Loeffler believes her experience through Cedarville’s senior design project helped prepare her for the challenges at Duotech.
“The senior design project was a good taste of what the design process really looks like and what kinds of problems could arise that would need to be overcome,” said Loeffler. “It is one thing to learn a bunch of theorems and formulas and apply them to set problems in a textbook, but it is another to learn how to problem solve and learn how to apply knowledge in a way that will be beneficial.”
Rogers recalled that the critical thinking and hands-on experience at Cedarville was essential to him being successful in his position.
“Classes such as IBC and Advanced Operations Management truly developed my own interpersonal skills in a way that strongly affects how I am able to successfully conduct business at Duotech,” said Rogers.
You can learn more about Duotech and the job opportunities it offers at duotechservices.com/careers.
Located in southwest Ohio, Cedarville University is an accredited, Christ-centered, Baptist institution with an enrollment of 3,711 undergraduate, graduate, and online students in more than 100 areas of study. Founded in 1887, Cedarville is recognized nationally for its authentic Christian community, rigorous academic programs, strong graduation and retention rates, accredited professional and health science offerings, and leading student satisfaction ratings.