Kudos to CADOS

Student Daniel Webber creates new tech service for community

Max Kriegel, Staff

Whether serving as a cantor at Mass or translating lines of binary to numbers at the academic bowl, junior Daniel Webber is hard to miss. Rivaling his passion for singing is his love of academics, in particular, math and science. Webber’s interest in these subjects has led to projects to further the existence of STEM.

The Computer Aided Design Ordering Service, or CADOS, is one of those projects. Using a desktop application to create dimensional models, community members can request objects for 3D printing, whether it be classroom decorations or other miscellaneous things.

“I’ve got 7 people in my CAD order service, and it’s really just something that I think is sort of my ministry,”  Webber said. “It’s the way I’m going to change McGuinness, and it’s going to prepare me to be a leader, whatever it is I choose to do.”

Webber became interested in computer modeling after a 3D printer was donated to Bishop John Carroll, where he was a middle school student. His desire to learn how to use it led to a crash course through YouTube tutorials, and by the end of his sophomore year, those self-taught skills led to bigger opportunities.

“Going into the summer of last year, I was fortunate enough to land an internship at a construction company; they had me trained to use SketchUp, which is the main CAD software that architects use,” Webber said.

Though relatively new, CADOS has gained traction among the faculty and student body. With a wide variety of possible prints, Webber and his fellow club members are undertaking orders beneficial to the classroom, while some teachers are designing their materials firsthand.

“Mr. Goff has a lot of 3D-printed decorations, but the big way CAD has influenced his classroom is his familiarity with SketchUp,” Webber said. “He made a bunch of little whiteboard holders attached to all of his desks, which was really easy for him to do. It wouldn’t take anyone very long to learn how to do something like that.”

The process of seeking out a possible design is relatively straight-forward, and is not as intricate as some may believe.

“It would be most efficient if someone contacted me, but if you just tell any member of CADOS that you’re interested in something, then they’ll tell me,” Webber said.

Webber has high hopes for the success and future of CADOS, especially as he nears his senior year.

“I like seeing what the teachers and the student body comes up with,” Webber said. “You never really know what you need until an opportunity like this is presented to you, and I really enjoy seeing how the members of CADOS are going to rise to meet those projects.”

(Want something delivered? Contact Daniel at [email protected])