Mechanical Engineering Facilities

Mechanical engineers don’t just learn scientific principles. They apply them to make something new. Our specialized facilities allow students to gain hands-on experience and expertise with the newest technology.

  1. College of Science & Engineering
  2. Academic Departments
  3. Department of Mechanical Engineering
  4. State-of-the-Art Facilities
Three students look at a 3d printer.

State-Of-The-Art Facilities at Your Disposal

Students benefit from the Department of Mechanical Engineering's machine shop, student design and project rooms, makerspaces, computer laboratories, and instructional and research laboratories. Along with the Mechanical Engineering Department's own labs, students have access to Seattle University’s Makerspace, Robotics Lab and Project Center design spaces.

Check out our list of facilities below to learn how you can answer life’s questions through experimentation.

Research Laboratories

Explore our research laboratories for mechanical engineering students.

The Soft Robotics Laboratory is where faculty and students can develop and fabricate light, flexible, portable and affordable robotic medical devices from soft polymers, gels and fluids to assist with at-home rehabilitation exercises.  Available equipment includes: 

  • FormLab Form 3L SLA 3D Printer
  • FlashForge Creator Pro FDM 3D printer
  • Vacuum Chamber with Pressure Gauge
  • Vacuum Pump
  • Temperature-Controlled Heat Chamber
  • Elastomer Molding Lab  

The BioFuel Research Lab allows faculty and students to invent and test technologies aimed at minimizing energy used in the microalgae processing. Available equipment includes: 

  • Ultra-low energy consumption microalgae dewatering system
  • Continuous and batch microalgae dewatering reactors
  • FlowCAM® flow cytometer
  • Spectrophotometer, pH meters and conductivity probes 

The Robotics Lab is where faculty and students design drones, perform high-fidelity simulations and quantify how varying control systems can affect energy use. Available equipment includes:

  • Hexacopter drone
  • Pixhawk flight controller
  • Oscilloscopes
  • Soldering, etc.  

The Composite Research Lab allows faculty and students to test and characterize advanced aerospace composite materials. Available testing methods include:

  • Nondestructive evaluation ultrasonic methods   

The Materials Laboratory offers access to the following equipment: 

  • 55-kip MTS 810 servo hydraulic test machine with Flex SE controller
  • Computerized data acquisition system
  • DigitalWave Fracture Wave detector, amplifier, & transducers
  • Olympus NDT pulser
  • Metallographic systems and optical microscopes 

The Computational Research Lab offers access to:  

  • Lenovo P350 Tower, featuring: 
    • i9-11900 CPU
    • NVIDIA RTX A2000 GPU
    • 16GB RAM
  • 2 Lenovo P360 Towers, featuring:
    • i9-12900 CPU
    • NVIDIA RTX A4000 GPU
    • 32GB RAM
  • Software such as: 
    • Ansys Student 2023
    • Solidworks 2023
    • Arduino/Python
    • Matlab
    • Microsoft Suite 

Instructional Laboratories

Learn more about our mechanical engineering instructional laboratories.

The Computer Aided Design (CAD) Lab offers access to: 

  • Solidworks
  • SolidCam
  • Matlab & Simulink
  • Microsoft VisualStudio 

The Instrumentation Lab provides: 

  • Instrumentation for vibration sensing, digital I/O, temperature, motor control
  • MPLABX Development Software for embedded microcontrollers
  • Electronics prototyping and testing equipment
  • High-speed digital camera and motion analysis software 

The Thermal Systems Lab offers opportunities to use:  

  • HVAC, refrigeration, pressure and temperature sensing laboratories
  • Heat transfer labs (boiling, condensation, convection, conduction)
  • Wind tunnel 

The Materials Science Lab introduces students to: 

  • Optical microscopy
  • Metallographic supplies
  • Composite manufacturing 

The 3D Printing Lab provide the following equipment: 

  • FDM Lulzbot Workhorse Printers
  • FDM Flash Forge Printers
  • SLA Formlabs Printer 

The Dynamic Systems Lab provides: 

  • Instrumented spring mass damper
  • Instrumented coupled pendulum
  • Instrumented water columns
  • Spectrum analyzer
  • Quanser control labs 

The Machine Shop

The Machine Shop supports hands-on learning, instruction and research.

This facility offers hands-on learning through the use of the following equipment: 

  • Hardinge toolroom HLV-H lathe
  • Graziano SAG 12 lathe
  • 3 Wilton instructional engine lathes
  • Hardinge horizontal mill
  • Bridgeport vertical mill
  • A vertical band saw w/30" throat
  • Sheet metal shears to 18 gage x 36"
  • Oxy-acetylene, MIG, and TIG welding equipment
  • Miller plasma cutter
  • HAAS VF2 4 axis machining center
  • 75W Laser Cutter