Waunakee native turns injuries into double major

Platteville, Wis.- Kaitlyn Galgon was in her senior year at Waunakee High School when she realized two things she liked and was good at, "I liked math and science," she said "and I was good at both."  That is when she realized engineering was a career path and began her research.  Through her research, the University of Wisconsin-Platteville fourth-year junior to be learned of UW-Platteville's strong engineer program and the opportunity to continue running cross country and track, the decision to attend UW-Platteville was an easy one.

Galgon started her education as an environmental engineering major; after her freshman year she thought about switching to civil engineering but decided to stay with environmental. During the fall cross country season, Galgon suffered a stress fracture in her femur and missed the fall cross country season, and in the spring, she reinjured her leg before the outdoor track and field season.  "At the end of the fall semester I added civil engineering," Galgon said.  "I was considering a switch before I was injured and knowing I had eligibility to use in fall of 2021, I decided to double major.  The injury allows me to do it, as I wasn't going to graduate without using up my eligibility."  Galgon and her academic advisor planned her next two and half years.  With the second injury and the additional semester in the spring of 2022, Galgon reworked her schedule to spread out the credits she would need to graduate to cover the spring as well.

Galgon is currently getting hands on experience doing a summer internship for Advanced Precast Company (APC) located about an hour west of UW-Platteville's campus in Dyersville, Iowa.  APC is a growing company that employs 50 people and operates out of a 67,000 square foot facility.  They engineer and design architectural structural wall panels and double-T panels with a variety of finishes, sizes and thicknesses.

"Kaitlyn is APC's first engineering intern from UW-Platteville," assistant director of operations Abbie Decker said.  "We started our summer internship this summer to help educate college students in the field of precast.  We are excited to help educate students and look forward to many great interns in the future."

APC produces its own concrete from a batch plant near their facility, and precast panels are made in the warehouse with concreate that was made 20 minutes prior.  "It is a very unique process," Galgon said.  "Usually companies have to order concrete and wait for it to be delivered.  Here at APC, we schedule when we want the concrete.  Our guys running the batch, then batch and deliver it to the factory.  We pour one to two bedlines a day with the ability to produce more."

Galgon day normally starts at 7:30 a.m. and finds her doing a wide range of tasks.  Most of her mornings consist of working on concrete mix designs, calculations and other forms that need to get done.  After her calculations and forms are completed, she will spend the rest of her day in the warehouse in the quality control lab making samples and mock-ups of the mix designs or on a construction site where the precast walls are being installed.

"I work a lot with the quality control (QC) team, making sure each panel meets its specifications," Galgon said.  "To do that, I read the design plans that basically show what each panel is supposed to look like.  Our laborer's build the panel and QC goes through it several times to make sure everything is in the right place within its specific tolerance."

APC maintains a Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute (PCI) certification, PCI is a well-known concrete certification and organization that requires multiple codes and standards to be meet.  With her work with QC, Galgon plays a vital role in making sure APC meets those codes and standards.  "After panels are finished, we bring our cement trucks into the warehouse and do a spread test, air test and take samples for breaking tests"," she said.  "Everything is recorded, which helps APC retain its PCI certification."

If Galgon is not in the facility, she can be found at a construction site where she will document everything from what time the panel was delivered, to when the delivery truck departed and the condition of each panel.  "I check to make sure each panel has its appropriate QC markings, some of which I have made," Galgon said proudly.  "I check to make sure the panel is still in good condition.  I will watch the panel erection company, to make sure it is lifted from the truck bed correctly and installed correctly."

APC currently bids out panel designs to outside firms.  The plans and designs are then submitted to APC.  Galgon recently started to assist in reviewing designs. "I will verify that piece tickets matched the approved shop drawings and that the connections, dimensions, etc. are correct," Galgon said. "When the design is finished, we need to go through them to make sure they can actually be built in our facility.  We will also adjust them to be shop drawings because the dimensions of specific items in panels are typically not included.  APC plans to start their own engineering department soon, so we don't have to go through each design, it would make production a lot quicker."

"We are currently working on developing an engineering department within the company," Decker said.  "We hope to have the opportunity to hire fulltime engineers in the near future-with the potential of hiring UW-Platteville engineering alumni."

Galgon is using many of the skills she learned in the classroom during this internship and credits the classes where she learned about the strength of materials and what tests you would need to preform to determine them.  "I now have the opportunity to perform these tests myself," she said.  "We verify that a concrete batch is within tolerance using the spread test.  In class I learned about the importance of the cohesiveness of concrete and what air pockets might do to the structure.  That knowledge is applied in QC pre, during and post pour."  Galgon also learned about the importance strength of soils and what type of foundation a building would require.  "In a class I took last semester, I learned about the variations of soils and how much each soil property can impact a building site," she said "APC's panels can be upwards of 20,000 pounds per panel.  All of that weight requires a strong foundation and well-compacted soil. It is neat to be able to see the connection in the field."

As a student-athlete, Galgon is always on the move, but always keeps focused on the details of what needs to be done. "I am not a person who can sit still for very long," she said.  "I like to be handed tasks that are challenging and detail oriented, but allow me to find success, gain knowledge and keep moving forward.  I get to walk around a lot at APC looking for minor details in a big panel.  I am constantly given new tasks and told 'this needs to be done, go figure out how to do it,' but I am always encouraged to ask questions and if I'm interested in learning something in an area of the company, all I have to do is ask and someone is more than willing to show me. As a student-athlete, if I am determined to do something, it will get done, I apply that attitude at APC whenever I am handed a new task.  I am eager to learn everything this company has to offer and the best way to do that is by challenging myself anyway I can."

Though cross country and track and field are mainly "individual" sports, there is a team concept to help teammates become better, the traits Galgon shows in sports has been showing up at the internship.  "Kaitlyn's competitiveness and team player mentality shows through when working on company projects," Decker said.  "Student-athletes understand what it takes to communicate effectively, arrive on time and work together with co-workers to accomplish a task.  Kaitlyn portrays all of these characteristics with enthusiasm and determination."

In athletics, the fan's only see the end result, they don't see the time and work that goes into the result.  "I work hard in practice," Galgon said.  "And I see the results at meets." 

APC clients don't get the chance to see Galgon's work in the facility, office or job site, but they will see the end results, but her work is noticed at APC.   "Kaitlyn is a go-getter; she is always up for a challenge," Decker said.  "Whatever task we throw in her direction, she is always eager to take it on and perform it to the best of her ability.  She has a unique opportunity with getting to experience all of APC's manufacturing departments.  Kaitlyn takes advantage by asking questions, participating in precast webinars, and working hands on with our product.  She is what every employer looks for in a future employee."

Being an athlete and being injured can be depressing and heartbreaking, but Galgon used the misfortune and challenged herself to earn two engineering degrees.  "I looked at my situation and figured out what needed to be done," Galgon said.  "Then I just ran with it. I am always determined to put my best effort into a task, just as if I was competing in a race, best effort always."