Forrest Wanket

Email: 
ambrforrestwanket@live.com
Year: 
2017
Department / Program: 
Mechanical Engineering
Project: 
Hyperloop

Bio

Forrest Wanket is a talented fourth year Mechanical Engineering student at UCSB. He thrives in a group setting by leading through example and cooperation. Forrest is mostly interested in dedicating his skills towards aerospace and defense, as well as medical devices. These are two completely different fields, but they both closely relate to his lifestyle. He comes from a military family with a strong sense of discipline. Type 1 diabetes is genetic in his family, so he is also interested in developing medical devices that make living with diabetes and other complications easier. 

Forrest's technical skills are demonstrated in the numerous projects that he has worked on at UCSB. For starters, he designed a special bike lock in his free time. He then moved onto a much more involved project that focused on motorcycle rider safety. He worked on a team designing a protective exoskeleton for riders feet and ankles, eliminating the need for bulky and uncomfortable boots. 

By far the most technically skilled project that he has worked on is the UCSB Hyperloop Pod. He is one of 30 engineering students that currently work on this project. He leads the design work of the braking system, and has demonstrated his advanced technical skills through his design optimizations and analysis. His understanding of the problems and solutions of the Hyperloop pod are shown through his multiple Ted Talk style presentations to professional engineers with a technical Q and A follow up. Along with advancing his technical skills with this project, he has gained tremendous cooperation and communication skills throughout the entire project. 

Lastly, Forrest is currently a Project Manager for a 100% sustainable car that is proposed and directed by Roy Lunn, the chief designer of the first Ford Mustangs, the first GT40, and the Jeep XJ. Forrest has obtained great insight from one of the greatest automotive designers who has ever lived. He shows his experience in leadership and mechanical engineering by directing the team of 12 mechanical engineers in the design efforts of the concept car. 

Along with his technical skills as a mechanical engineer, he has exceptional business skills. You can see this through his accomplishments as a business man. In high school, he started a clothing company, AMBR Clothing, that is now starting to take off. Furthermore, he started a catering service company in Santa Barbara while maintaing a full time work load at UCSB. This company, Hostess Helpers, was started in Orange County, and he branched the company to Santa Barbara county as a regional owner. Forrest wants to extend his business experience to the field of engineering by pursuing an MBA in business and becoming a project manager for large scale operations. 

Forrest ultimately wants to be a successful and efficient leader in mechanical engineering with an end game of project management.