Brendan Stratford
Mechanical engineering student with career interests in mechatronics, ocean engineering, and sustainability.
I currently serve as the waterjet supervisor in the Cal Poly Mustang ‘60 machine shop, and as officer in Cal Poly Bike Builders Club.
Outside of engineering I love riding bikes, exploring, and immersing myself in new hobbies.
Small Projects
Shorter timeline builds aimed at refining specific processes.
Branding iron MK1
Skills: woodturning, Dremel
Car campers
Skills: carpentry, problem solving
Upcycled watering can
Skills: aluminum welding
Dice dispenser
Skills: 3D printing, Fusion 360
Casting
Skills: casting (of course)
Bike lock holder
Skills: 3D printing, Fusion 360
Laser engraved leather wallet
Skills: leatherwork, laser operation, Illustrator
Cutting boards
Skills: woodworking
Large Projects
Longer timeline, more ambitious projects. Click the picture to learn more.
Fabricated from steel tubes, Duck Bike sharpened my skills at TIG welding, manual milling, waterjet operation, and so much more.
Given load criteria, my team and I designed a bicycle trailer for our Design for Strength and Stiffness class. This entailed SolidWorks modeling and FEA, constructing the trailer out of PVC, and testing with the design load.
After taking a college class on ocean dynamics and some solo research, I condensed what I had learned into an interactive presentation for the Huntington State Beach Junior Lifeguard program. In the lecture, I explain the origins of wind, waves, and tides.
As a Christmas gift to my mom, I built the most extravagant “little free library” I could imagine. This library lives in the yard of my parent’s house and gets a ton of use!
Hanging Flowerpots
Another Christmas gift for Mom! This project gave me waterjet experience and an opportunity to rapid prototype a welding jig.
High School Senior Project
Obtained a welding “apprenticeship” and MIG welded a desk chair and end table. Additionally, I wrote a research paper on new and novel welding techniques.