Breanne Rohloff is one of few females to drive a NASA crawler
Imagine driving a vehicle that weighs as much as 15 Statutes of Liberty and is as big as a baseball infield.
Breanne Rohloff, mechanical engineer for the crawler transporter structures and mobile launcher facilities group, does just that as part of a team of drivers/engineers with Jacobs Engineering contracted by NASA.
NASA uses these 6.6 million-pound crawler-transporters to haul rockets, spacecraft and similar structures to launch pads at Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
It’s as intricate of a process as you might think.
These crawlers move at a top speed of less than 1 mph on average and can take around eight hours to travel the three or so miles to the launch pad.
Getting this massive vehicle from point A to point B is a true team effort, Rohloff said.
How did it all start?
Rohloff said around middle school she began to take an interest in science and technology. As she progressed through school, that interest drew her toward engineering.
She earned a degree in aerospace engineering in 2019 from the University of Central Florida in Orlando. Prior to completing her degree, Rohloff landed an internship with Jacobs Engineering in 2018, where she connected with a group of people who worked on the NASA crawlers.
That experience created a more specific interest in these crawlers and how all the structures and rockets are moved by NASA.
Rohloff recalls a trip to Kennedy Space Center where they drove up next to a crawler and being in awe of its stature.
This also ended up being her first time inside a crawler, which came as another surprise.
“I was in shock because they said we were going to take a ride,” Rohloff said. “I thought it would stop for us to get on, but it doesn’t. You just get on while it’s rolling. I was a little taken aback at first, but it was really cool.”
Timing was in Rohloff’s favor as well.
A position with Jacobs Engineering opened up about the same time she was graduating from UCF.
It all seemed to fall in place, but this was just the beginning and the acclimation process remains ongoing, said Rohloff.
Learning every day
Like many jobs, much of the initial training involves shadowing a more experienced co-worker.
“Now you’re in this group with multiple responsibilities and it’s kind of, feeling out,” Rohloff said. “Where do I fit in during this? You start by watching and shadow another engineer. It’s a lot of learning, a lot of manuals and a lot of drawings.”
Advancement is tracked through a job training curriculum that typically takes between one-and-a-half and two years to complete.
To complete this curriculum, a training coordinator or previously certified employee will sign off to provide internal certification that you are proficient at required tasks.
“You start by watching what they do and they explain what they’re looking for,” Rohloff said. “Then it transitions to you still watching, but they’re asking you more questions. You’re kind of directing them to what you think they should be looking for. Then it transitions into you actually being in the role of operator with someone watching and guiding you. That’s when you start to operate yourself.”
The complexities of the job are numerous, not to mention additional challenges Rohloff discovered as she began spending more time in the cab.
“The first nuance or quirk when I transitioned from the observing role to actually being behind the wheel was the perspective,” Rohloff said. “In the cab you have windows all around you. When we drive we’re standing, so your height matters with your line of sight. The engineers that were training me were a lot taller than me. We’re looking at stationary points, and those were different for me than it was to the taller engineers. I certainly didn’t expect height to play into it, but it did. That was something I had to learn early on.”
Yet, the feeling of the first completed haul tops all emotions, Rohloff says.
“Being in control of the steering wheel the first time, you just kind of realize the level of trust and responsibility,” she said. “It brings you back down to Earth. It’s the culmination of a lot of people’s work. You take it seriously and do your best because you don’t want to let anyone else on the team down.”
Making an impact
Looking back, Rohloff could not have imagined she’d be driving crawlers for NASA one day.
Especially at the age of 25.
“To be where I am now, I could have never envisioned it,” Rohloff said. “I had to go through a lot of refining and be exposed to different opportunities. I did dream of having an impact like this and being able to work alongside so many other people who are doing such amazing things. It’s very humbling to look back where I started – all the people that believe in you and foster that development and growth. It just makes me feel very grateful for the opportunities I’ve been afforded.”
Rohloff hopes to inspire others on their journey.
“It’s a privilege to speak about my experience, and hopefully that does make an impact on women and young girls who have an interest in something, but maybe haven’t seen someone in that role. To be out here and see all of the women in the space program in positions of leadership working together on this program that will put women on the moon.
I want to show others you have a spot here if you want it and you’re willing to work for it.”
And she’s quick to point out that she hasn’t done it alone.
“There’s nothing we can do out here or accomplish without a team,” Rohloff said. “There’s a multitude of teams working together out here. You’re never going to do anything by yourself. There’s always going to be people behind you, pushing you, helping you. It makes you feel grateful. You find your mentors, the people who inspire you, and you work to be like them so you can be that person for somebody else one day.”
In Rohloff’s case, she may already be that person. LL