SENIOR PROJECT

When commercially harvesting shellfish, specifically clams and oyster, plastic mesh bags are commonly used. The issue is taking the raw bag material and cutting it to a specified bag length. The material comes on a 2000 ft. spool and needs to be cut to a length of 54 in. Using an existing, but outdated machine as a bench mark, customer requested a new bag cutting machine be designed to make the process 10% more efficient. Using mechanical machine design and computer designing software the machine was designed to the customer specifications. The design composed of free standing steel frame, powered by an electric motor with a v-belt pulley system to transfer the power. The design features safety improvement as well a reduction in size. The overall design was an improvement from the current machine being used because it was able to be moved and disassembled easily. The new design proved to be 14% more efficient by increasing the machine speed. By guaranteeing an improved efficiency to the customer, the machine was paid for and built entirely at Central Washington University. The machine was tested with a final efficiency of 20% over the current machine. The final calculated efficiency was based off the bench mark made from the current machine. The machine highlights the skills and craftsmanship that are taught within the CWU Mechanical Engineering technology major.