1819 makerspace transforms into innovation boot camp
As one of the University of Cincinnati’s largest co-op employers, Kinetic Vision has long valued its extensive Bearcat connections.
Now, it’s collaborating with the UC 1819 Innovation Hub to expand the skill sets of co-op students by training them in Greater Cincinnati’s most advanced makerspace.
Kinetic Vision’s boot camp took over the 1819 Ground Floor Makerspace for a five-day training intensive for engineering students. While those enrolled at UC’s College of Engineering and Applied Science gain engineering know-how in their classes, Kinetic Vision’s boot camp provides co-ops with valuable on-the-job training.
Future vision for Kinetic Vision
Student co-ops working during Kinetic Vision's boot camp. Photo/Kori Moore
The engineering boot camp for co-ops is part of Kinetic Vision’s plan to build a talent pipeline from UC to the company. Bearcat graduates play significant roles in helping Kinetic Vision succeed, so its leaders seek out UC’s next generation of leaders.
Kinetic Vision saw a clear path through the 1819 Innovation Hub, the University of Cincinnati’s front door for industry, inventors, innovators and entrepreneurs. The building serves as a startup incubator, a corporate crossroads, a think tank for businesses – and now, as a proving ground for higher-level engineering skills.
Dakota Alverson, a mechanical engineer at Kinetic Vision and the lead for the co-op boot camp, sees immense value in partnering with UC. “We’ve done this co-op boot camp several times in the past,” Alverson says. “What we’ve seen is that the co-ops who’ve gone through this boot camp come in much more ready to hit the ground running on day one.”
That’s the goal for Kinetic Vision again in 2025: provide talented Bearcats with on-the-job training via a hands-on intensive using 1819 makerspace technology.
“Kinetic Vision,” Alverson explains, “is an engineering design firm. We help our clients take their vision from concept all the way through to an advanced prototype quickly. What we’ve tried to recreate here at the boot camp is a one-week design process.”
The quick pace of Kinetic Vision’s boot camp requires an advanced making facility, and Alverson notes that the 1819 Ground Floor Makerspace has both the equipment and experts for success. Another factor is that UC boasts a foundation of brilliant student co-ops from which to recruit.
Kinetic Vision's partnership with the University of Cincinnati runs deep.
Dakota Alverson Mechanical engineer, Kinetic Vision
“Kinetic Vision’s partnership with the University of Cincinnati runs deep,” Alverson says. “A huge number of our full-time hires, including the president of our company, are UC hires. So, there’s a lot of collaboration.”
Kinetic Vision is one of countless companies that value the resources found at UC and its 1819 Innovation Hub. From startups working on robotics and cloud storage to leading corporations like Microsoft, Procter & Gamble and U.S. Bank, businesses flock to the University of Cincinnati for its accessible technology and skilled co-op students.
A pathway to business success
View of 1819 Innovation Hub's Ground Floor Makerspace. Photo/Gregory Glevicky
Kinetic Vision’s engineering boot camp exists to fast-track co-op students’ skills in 3D printing, laser cutting, waterjet cutting and computer numerical control (CNC) machining. The training is intense but delivers on its goal to prepare the company and its UC co-op students for potential full-time job offers.
The 1819 Innovation Hub was founded for a similar purpose: to place accessible, affordable resources and best-in-class students at companies’ fingertips. Along with the Cincinnati Innovation District, 1819 has become a destination for businesses as they learn how to efficiently and effectively innovate.
Kinetic Vision remains one of Greater Cincinnati’s most innovative companies, and one reason isn’t lost on Alverson. “Our partnership with the [1819] makerspace is newer, but we’re already seeing a lot of return. Our co-ops are coming in much more experienced in the technologies we use at Kinetic Vision … they’re ready to go on day one.”
Featured image at top: Makerspace director Benjamin Jones speaks during Kinetic Vision's co-op boot camp. Photo/Mia Rohrer
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