Nathan Rekstad - Dunwoody College of Technology, Machine Tool Technology

Scholarship Amount

• PMA Educational Foundation: $1,000
• Twin Cities District: $2,000
• Total: $3,000

Nathan Rekstad is a driven and skilled apprentice in the precision machining industry, currently building his expertise at Andrew Tool & Machining in Maple Grove. His journey into manufacturing began with an entrepreneurial spirit—during his junior and senior years of high school, he owned and operated a successful lawn care business, managing everything from customer relations to equipment maintenance. This early experience instilled in him a strong work ethic and problem-solving mindset that he now applies to the machining trade.

Since joining Andrew Tool & Machining in early 2024, Nathan has progressed from a shop helper to a grinding apprentice, honing his abilities with jig and surface grinders. He works with extreme precision, regularly handling flatness, parallelism and positional tolerances as tight as .0002 inches. His hands-on approach to machining was reinforced through a project with the SAE Baja club at his school, where he collaborated with an engineering student to redesign and manufacture critical components for an off-road vehicle, applying both practical machining skills and theoretical problem-solving.

Nathan's passion for machining grew from an initial curiosity into a dedicated career pursuit. While he once considered engineering, he found machining to be the perfect blend of hands-on work and technical knowledge. Looking ahead, he plans to deepen his expertise in manufacturing while potentially complementing his skillset with mechanical engineering training. By combining practical shop experience with engineering principles, he aims to become a well-rounded professional in the metalworking industry.