June 10, 2026• FAME USA

First-year FAME Student Eliminates Plant Floor Hazards 

2026-05-12 FAME National Conference 2026-05-12 FAME National Conference in Jacksonville, USA on May 14, 2026.
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Less than a year into his FAME program, Mat Klapetek was already improving safety and operations on Mazda Toyota Manufacturing’s plant floor. The Alabama FAME Huntsville Tech Chapter student took first place in the first-year FAME student Manufacturing Core Exercise competition for standardizing production control boxes across the plant. 

Mat Klapetek presents his winning Manufacturing Core Exercise project at the FAME National Conference.

The project: Klapetek noticed that production control boxes on Mazda Toyota’s plant floor posed electrical, safety and operational hazards. Many had cracks, exposed wires and loose lids held down by electrical tape due to frequent usage and screws torqued too tightly. 

  • He installed new, standardized boxes, rewiring the lights and buttons himself. 
  • This improved safety and reliability for all workers on the plant floor, reducing the possibility of downtime due to control box issues. It also provided preventative maintenance, making them easier to visually inspect and repair. 
  • The cost of new boxes was minimal compared to injuries or production stops. 

We have a winner: This was one of three first-year projects selected from across the FAME USA network to compete at the FAME National Conference’s student MCE Competition.  In the final session, Klapetek was awarded first place in the first-year student competition. 

  • Judges scored each on professionalism, presentation content, MCE adherence and project impact. 

The power of MCEs: MCEs are a core component of FAME’s curriculum, designed to overcome common shortcomings in technical education. Every year, students identify, implement and present innovative solutions to MCE-related challenges in their actual workplaces. 

  • The five MCEs are safety culture, visual workplace organization, lean manufacturing, problem solving and machine reliability. 

Delivering impact: Across the nation, FAME students like Klapetek are walking into plants, identifying hazards and delivering solutions that protect workers and prevent costly downtime. With FAME, the next generation of manufacturers isn’t waiting in the wings. They’re already on the floor. 

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