{"id":13603,"date":"2026-06-26T07:01:13","date_gmt":"2026-06-26T12:01:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/?post_type=campus_story&p=13603"},"modified":"2026-06-26T07:01:14","modified_gmt":"2026-06-26T12:01:14","slug":"from-automation-to-aviation-uw-superior-students-tour-wisconsin-transportation-sites","status":"publish","type":"campus_story","link":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/story\/from-automation-to-aviation-uw-superior-students-tour-wisconsin-transportation-sites\/","title":{"rendered":"From Automation to Aviation: UW-Superior students tour Wisconsin transportation sites"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"Photo<\/a>
UW-Superior Transportation and Logistics Management Club tours Menards distribution center.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

A group of University of Wisconsin-Superior students from the Transportation and Logistics Management Club, along with their adviser, Daniel Rust<\/a>, professor and chair of the School of Business and Economics<\/a>, recently traveled to central and eastern Wisconsin for a series of industry tours and transportation museum visits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The first stop on the three-day trip was the Menards distribution center in Eau Claire. Students Joel Lembke and Gus Schauer shared insights from the tour.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI was highly impressed by the level of automation incorporated throughout the facility,\u201d Lembke said. \u201cOne detail that stood out was that their automated forklifts are nearly nine years old and still operating exceptionally well, which speaks to the quality and reliability of their systems.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Schauer also reflected on the experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cGetting an up-close look at an automated warehouse at Menards was a special experience,\u201d he said. \u201cMany companies are starting automation systems from scratch, so hearing what Menards had to do to build its system was meaningful. What I found especially insightful was the emphasis on safety. The automated robots on the warehouse floor are equipped with cameras and sensors on three sides that allow them to detect obstacles and track their surroundings.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The group then visited the Experimental Aircraft Association Museum in Oshkosh, which Lembke said was his favorite stop.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAs someone who is a huge World War II history enthusiast, seeing the aircraft up close and learning the stories behind them was incredibly fascinating,\u201d he said. \u201cI also enjoyed connecting many of the exhibits to topics Dr. Rust has discussed in class, particularly the history of aviation.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dillon Rust said he especially enjoyed the hands-on activities and demonstrations that highlighted physics concepts related to flight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The group continued to Schneider National\u2019s headquarters in Green Bay. Rik Somerville, a member of the first graduating class of UW-Superior\u2019s transportation and logistics management<\/a> program in 2000, provided a behind-the-scenes tour of the corporate campus, including the company\u2019s newest building, known as \u201cThe Grove.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Students were impressed by the eco-friendly design aimed at encouraging creativity and collaboration. The building features solar-powered lighting and furniture made from recycled materials.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After a brief stop at Lambeau Field, the group toured the National Railroad Museum. Gary Ortiz said it was his favorite stop of the trip.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMy favorite part of this year\u2019s club trip was visiting the National Railroad Museum,\u201d Ortiz said. \u201cI\u2019ve been a railroad enthusiast since I was very young. Seeing the front ends of famous named passenger trains from the golden age of railroading was incredible. The most amazing artifact was the only British locomotive in an American railroad museum\u2014the LNER A4 6008 Dwight D. Eisenhower, named after the president following World War II.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Transportation and Logistics Management Club\u2019s spring 2026 trip provided students with an engaging and educational experience. The tours and museums expanded students\u2019 understanding of the transportation industry and its history while also strengthening friendships. Club leaders encourage more students to participate in future trips to transportation-related sites across the upper Midwest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

Written by UW-Superior<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Link to original story: https:\/\/uwsuper.edu\/about\/news\/from-automation-to-aviation-uw-superior-students-tour-wisconsin-transportation-sites\/<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A group of University of Wisconsin-Superior students from the Transportation and Logistics Management Club, along with their adviser, Daniel Rust, professor and chair of the School of Business and Economics, recently traveled to central and eastern Wisconsin for a series of industry tours and transportation museum visits. The first stop on the three-day trip was the Menards […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":13604,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","institution":[110],"story_category":[148],"class_list":["post-13603","campus_story","type-campus_story","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","institution-uw-superior","story_category-economy"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/campus_story\/13603","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/campus_story"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/campus_story"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13603"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/13604"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13603"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"institution","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/institution?post=13603"},{"taxonomy":"story_category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/story_category?post=13603"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}