GD&T Training Manual for CMM PC-DMIS
The Context
I was enrolled in ME 203 (Geometric Dimensioning and Tolerancing) during Spring 2020, when the lab portion of the course depended heavily on in-person demonstrations and hands-on practice. Midway through the semester, the pandemic disrupted lab access, leaving future students without any resources they could use on their own.
As one of the last groups to complete the lab in person, we were asked to create a manual that could support students when demonstrations and consistent lab access were no longer guaranteed.
The Challenge
I wanted to write something students could rely on while working at the machine. The goal was to capture the kinds of guidance I normally picked up through observation: what the technician demonstrated, what I learned through trial and error, and what had to be pieced together from reference material.
The challenge was to bring those threads together into a single guide that made the work feel navigable.
My Approach
I organized the manual around the same progression we followed in lab, starting with setup and alignment before moving into more complex measurements. Explanations appear where decisions are made, reflecting the kinds of questions that come up in the moment.
Safety guidance is embedded directly into the steps, framed as technique rather than warning. Procedures are broken into small, deliberate actions to make it easier to move between the physical machine, the software interface, and the written instructions without losing context.
The Impact
The manual became the primary learning resource for ME 203 during periods of limited lab access. It allowed students to work more independently, reduced common beginner errors, and provided more consistent instruction across lab sections.
What began as a final project turned into a long-term reference students continued to rely on.