Belief in herself took Rachael Lockett, 23, a precision machinist at Christopher Tool & Mfg. Co, Solon, OH, a long way – to the
National Tooling & Machining Association’s 36th Annual National Apprentice Competition, held April 23 through 26 at
Cuyahoga Community College, Cleveland.

The national competition consisted of two days of machining projects plus a test of knowledge and theory.

"I wanted to win because no one believed I could," she said.

Lockett said she expected tough competition, not because of her gender, but because the other participants were manual machinists,
whereas she specializes in CNC, EDM, surface grinding, and other processes at Christopher Tool. The company makes
high-precision parts, primarily for the aerospace industry.

Of the six other competitors – Andrew Sears, Michael Villegas, James Moody, Lucas Starch, Brendan A. Wimer,
and Craig W. Hargrave – Lockett was the only woman contestant.

Although she missed being one of the top three winners, she said she was honored to be in the competition.

She and the other participants had already won local events staged between October 2007 and January 2008 to qualify as
regional champions. Each regional champion must have completed the Level I: Measurement, Materials, and Safety credentialing
exam from the National Institute for Metalworking Skills.

The competition represented a homecoming of sorts since the association was incorporated in Cleveland in 1943, and the
city hosted the national championship site in 1996.

Besides owning bragging rights as the "Best of the Best", the apprentices received plaques, trophies, and prizes. The top 3 finishers
received an expense-paid trip to Switzerland hosted by the Swiss embassy.

Being a woman in a male dominated field, Lockett is used to people underestimating her, she said."

Other machinists don’t want to listen to me," she said. But, that makes her want to stick with it even more to prove herself.

Lockett said that other women who are thinking of joining the machining world should not be discouraged.

"Don’t listen to what other people say about not being able to do it. You can if you just believe in yourself."