Laser Concept to Keepsake: How an Engineering Professor Used the Laser Cutter to Create Meaningful Graduation Gifts in LNDL’s Innovation Station

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By Bridget Babington, Loyola Class of 2029

Suzanne Keilson, Associate Professor and Chair of Engineering at Loyola, came into LNDL interested in utilizing the laser cutter to produce graduation gifts for her students this past spring. Her idea was to generate custom phone stands that could be useful in their future endeavors and serve as a keepsake from their time at Loyola.  

“I wanted to have the experience of working with my hands,” Suzanne mentioned, which ultimately kickstarted this process. First, Suzanne had to get certified to use the laser cutter. Then, she met with Clara, the Technology Resources Assistant at LNDL, to discuss her ideas, plans, and any materials that would be needed to properly execute her project.  

Clara and Suzanne ultimately decided acrylic would be best suited as the medium for this project. Suzanne wanted a material that would be solid enough to support a phone, and liked the look of clear acrylic.

“After considering a bunch of different options, she came in with the design file for a two-part phone stand,” which was then tested on scrap material to ensure it transferred properly (Clara). 

Phone stand design laser cut into scrap material for testing. 

Once the sizing and details were perfected on the scrap material, Suzanne and Clara advanced to the next steps using the acrylic. Suzanne’s design featured the Loyola ‘L’ logo, as well as a short text thanking the students for their contributions to the department.  

Clear acrylic piece with engraved message: Thank you for your leadership. Engineering Department Loyola University Maryland Class of 2025
The acrylic piece featuring Professor Keilson’s ‘thank you’ note. 

This was not a one-off project. Clara and Suzanne were intentional throughout the process, taking their time and making changes when needed. 

“This involved finetuning the power of the laser cutter and storing the parameter in the machine file. There were a number of additional iterations, primarily one involving selecting a desired font and size and then orienting the logo the way we wanted,” per Suzanne. 

The first engraving on the acrylic ran into some minor setbacks. “Due to the way the pieces slot together, they weren’t oriented in the way we wanted… the ‘L’ ended up being backwards,” Clara shared.  

Clara and Suzanne went back in, fixing the issues by flipping the ‘L’ around so that it would display correctly. Another edit was with the proportions of the acrylic pieces. Suzanne pointed out that at this stage, a phone would be too heavy, potentially tipping over the stand. This was also rectified by, “making the secondary base piece longer, providing a counter force or torque” (Suzanne).  

Once those changes were made, the design was final. It took around 8 minutes to cut and etch each stand and 2 appointments from start to finish to receive the final product.  

Clear acrylic phone stand with Loyola L logo engraved
The final assembled phone stand, featuring the ‘L’ on the bottom and the note engraved on the back. 

“The most important part of the project to me is the process that it took to result in a very lovely final project. We are always encouraging students to build time into their projects for testing and altering setting of the machine, things like that” (Clara). 

This reiterates how important it is to take time to experiment with different outcomes throughout a project to ensure the quality of the final product.  

Suzanne summed it up as a great experience, both fun and educational. She added, “and the library staff was so patient and supportive throughout! Now I am eager to try my next project!” 

Check out LNDL’s Innovation Station webpage to learn more about how you can get certified to use the laser cutter for your own projects like this one.