Some journeys really do come full circle.
The Canerector Foundation has made a $1.5-million gift to Queen’s University’s Smith Engineering, promoting hands-on learning opportunities through funding of the McLaughlin Hall Machine Shop, a cornerstone of experiential education at Queen’s.
In recognition of this investment, the shop’s open bay area will be named the Canerector Foundation Machining Lab. This is a space where students turn classroom theory into reality using real-world tools and technologies.
For Amanda Hawkins, Director of the Canerector Foundation and a Queen’s mechanical engineering alumna, the investment is both practical and personal. It reflects a long-held belief in learning by doing and a journey that began with early exposure to engineering itself.
From early exposure to hands-on education.
As a third-generation leader in a business built on designing and manufacturing industrial products, Hawkins grew up around the idea of building things and understanding how they fit together. Time spent around the business from a young age made engineering and creating feel less abstract and more like a way of thinking.
Years later, those influences came together in her decision to pursue a mechanical engineering degree at Queen’s, a choice her father Cecil Hawkins immediately recognized as a natural fit.
“I remember thinking, that’s kind of the perfect degree for a senior role at Canerector,” he later reflected. “It’s the degree I wish I had. With her academic strengths and how mathematically inclined she is, it gave her a powerful foundation for her future.”
A machine shop at the heart of learning.
That belief in practical, hands-on education is exactly what makes the machine shop unique. Unlike more centralized or research-only facilities at other institutions, the shop is embedded directly within the Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering and is used by all undergraduate students, as well as student design teams.
Students don’t just observe, they build. They learn machining, prototyping, safety, teamwork, and problem-solving in a space where classroom concepts are turned into real-world solutions.
The Canerector Foundation’s investment will allow the engineering program to maintain this program, helping students bridge theory and practice while advancing Smith Engineering’s vision for an education that is technically rigorous, experientially focused, and creatively inspired.
Building for the future. Together.
During the visit, Amanda (Sc’07) was joined by Jonathan Puddy (Sc’90) and his son David (Sc’23), one recently retired from Canerector, the other currently working as an engineer at Conrex Steel, a Canerector-owned business. Both are Queen’s engineering alumni, and the three proudly wore their engineering leather jackets, swapping stories about patches earned and memories made. It was a meaningful reminder of how shared experiences, and strong institutions can connect generations.
Part of a broader commitment.
The Queen’s gift is part of the Canerector Foundation’s broader commitment to education, housing, and healthcare. This year alone, Canerector’s success has funded over $10 million in donations, including scholarships and training facilities that support skilled trades and education across 21 colleges.
“For me, it’s incredibly rewarding to see the impact our results are having in communities,” Hawkins says. “Supporting hands-on education is one of the most meaningful ways we can help prepare people for careers that build the world around us.”