photo by: Josie Heimsoth/Journal-World

Several Free State High School students gather to hear a presentation about carpentry from staff at Kissick Construction on Tuesday, October 29, 2024.

Some days, working in the trades means getting a call about an electrical problem and finding out that it’s just a burnt-out lightbulb.

Other days, working in the trades means making a 3D map of a job site with a drone, or dangling on a rope to inspect a railroad bridge while trains are passing through.

That incredible variety is what high school students from around the Lawrence area got a taste of Tuesday at a showcase hosted by Bowersock Mills and Power Co., designed to expose them to fields like construction, mechanical and electrical work that require skills other than a traditional college degree.

“Every day is a little bit different,” Sarah Hill-Nelson, operator of Bowersock Mills and Power Co., said. ” … It’s challenging and interesting, and you can make great money and you don’t necessarily have to go to college.”

During the day-long event, students from Free State High, Perry-Lecompton High, Bishop Seabury and other schools had the chance to visit Kansas Manufacturing to see a machine shop; experience some concrete and drone work with Kissick Construction; learn about electrical work with Randall Electric and rope access with Trevor Whipkey; and also get a tour of the Bowersock plant, the only hydroelectric power plant in Kansas.

photo by: Josie Heimsoth/Journal-World

Free State High School students learn about drone work from Kissick Construction staff on Tuesday, October 29, 2024.

The event was sponsored by the Hamm Foundation, which supports the construction industry talent pool by providing educational opportunities, grants and scholarships. Jeff Hamm, president of the foundation, said it conducts industry tours like this one to connect students with professionals across various fields. These tours aim to help students gain a clearer understanding of daily activities in different trades and what careers in those fields entail.

On Tuesday, the several dozen students in attendance split up into small groups and rotated around for presentations and demonstrations in a variety of fields.

At Kansas City-based Kissick Construction’s station, they heard about skills in carpentry, which encompasses millwork, sheetrock installation, cabinetry, doors, windows and more. Kissick workers were able to demonstrate another piece of what they do: building concrete walls.

In addition, the Kissick team showed how drone mapping works. A drone can help map out an area of land by taking several pictures from the air and using software to digitally “stitch” them together to establish a 3D map of a worksite.

“It basically takes 100-something pictures and it stitches them all together, finds the common pixels, and then lays all those photos on top of each other,” said surveyer Jared Sommer.

photo by: Josie Heimsoth/Journal-World

Trevor Whipkey demonstrates the work of a rope access technician on Tuesday, October 29, 2024.

Another presenter, rope access technician Trevor Whipkey, demonstrated how professionals use ropes and specialized equipment to work at heights or in confined spaces that are difficult to reach otherwise.

“It’s not really rocket science, but safety’s the name of the game,” Whipkey said.

That situation on the railroad bridge is one of the unusual assignments that Whipkey has been on in the past.

“An engineer a few years back called me and was like, ‘hey, Trevor, can we inspect a railroad bridge with a live load on?’ Meaning, can we hang off ropes while trains are running across a bridge? It took a minute to get comfortable with that, but we figured it out,” Whipkey said.

photo by: Josie Heimsoth/Journal-World

Graduate of 2023 from Free State High School Wyatt Sutton shares his experience of finding his career path as a diesel mechanic on Tuesday, October 29, 2024.

The students heard a presentation from Wyatt Sutton, a recent graduate of Free State High School who went into a career as a diesel mechanic. He said what drew him to the career was the people he got to work with every day. He works on vehicle repairs and maintaining eight semitrucks, some tractors, skid loaders and forklifts.

Sutton said he’s really enjoyed working in this setting because of the pride he can take in his work.

“And if I mess something up, it comes right back to me,” Sutton said. “It encourages me to just do a good job everyday and make sure that the work I do is something I can be proud of.”

Of course, the students also had the chance to tour the Bowersock hydroelectric power plant, where water from the Kaw drops into the facility to turn the machinery and generate power. Typically, the plant generates seven megawatts of power, but the energy output is directly influenced by the water level in the river.

They also went to the other side of the river to Kansas Manufacturing, where Jay Eller told them about the work done in the shop — maintenance, repairs, and creating prototypes and other parts.

photo by: Josie Heimsoth/Journal-World

Jay Eller talks about a lot of the work done at Kansas Manufacturing, from maintenance to repairs to prototypes, on Tuesday, October 29, 2024.

And in a demonstration from Randall Electric, students saw how switches, outlets, and lights are installed. The team also explained how to bend an electrical conduit around obstacles, changing its direction while maintaining a consistent distance from walls, ceilings or other surfaces.

When the team gets a call about a light not working in their house, Brandon Beebe, an electrician with Randall Electric, said they will look at three things – a breaker, a switch and the light itself.

“You’d be surprised,” Beebe said. “(Sometimes) we go to a house and it’s just a bad light bulb, but that’s kind of what keeps it fun because I can go to three different homes of the day and each place is different.

“Every call is different,” he said, “and every day is different.”

photo by: Josie Heimsoth/Journal-World

A view of Bowersock Mills and Power Co. from the Kansas River bridge to North Lawrence on Tuesday, October 29, 2024.