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Central Alberta machinists wanting to help develop ventilator prototype

Prototype was developed by former Stettler resident Peter Brockley
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Peter Brockley, who taught in Stettler for many years at William E. Hay Secondary Campus, is pictured here in his Glade, B.C. shop. Brockley has helped to develop a prototype for a ventilator which is expected to be in soaring demands in the weeks to come with the COVID-19 pandemic. Local machinists who were taught by Brockley are eager to help see this project through to fruition. photo submitted

Central Alberta machinists are eager to get onboard with helping a former Stettler man get a ventilator prototype he helped develop into production.

Peter Brockley, who now lives in Glade which is located in the West Kootenays, was a machine shop teacher at William E. Hay Secondary Campus in Stettler for 30 years.

Graham Peterson was a student of Brockley’s during his years in Stettler, and counts him as a key inspiration in his current work as owner of the Leduc-based Grayco Machine Ltd.

“What we are trying to do is to go international with it,” he explained of working with Brockley to see the ventilator project come to fruition. “The way this has all tied together - Peter was a machine shop teacher in Stettler in the 70s and 80s, and we were all his high school students. Now what’s happened is that Peter has gotten in touch with Ed Dittrich (owner of the Red Deer-based Dittrich Machine Services) and Grayco here in Leduc to see if we could push this story further.”

A ventilator is described as a machine designed to provide mechanical ventilation by moving air into and out of the lungs, to deliver breaths to a patient who is unable to breathe, or who is breathing insufficiently.

Currently, countries around the world are in short supply of the equipment as doctors battle the coronavirus.

They are also, unfortunately, tremendously expensive to produce.

That is, unless the new, simpler prototype that Brockley has helped to develop goes into production.

As Peterson pointed out, local machinist shops like his certainly have the capabilities to help Brockley out.

Former students around the region have also been really enthusiastic about supporting their former teacher and mentor.

“All we need is the approval from the federal government - which is happening right now.”

Peterson said he and Dittrich have both been in touch with their local government representatives for further help in moving the project forward.

“We are ready to jump on this, and we have all the capabilities. We’ve both been in the industry for 40 years.”

Peterson said Brockley caught the attention of a whole bunch of young students via his inspirational teaching style.

“Those young guys grew up to have machine shops,” he explained adding that many of them have also had key roles on influential boards and organizations within the industry as well.

“He was a lifetime mentor for a lot of us, and still is,” said Peterson. “You look back and you think, wow, that (influence) was bigger than I knew.”

In an earlier interview, Brockley’s son, Dr. Graham Brockley, said there is potentially a huge shortage of ventilators in Canada.

To that end, he mentioned that his dad is such a natural when it comes to creating all kinds of things. He knew his dad was certainly one to think outside of the box.

Graham Brockley said he had started to explore ways of producing ventilators that might be somewhat cheaper.

He eventually found plans years back about constructing a low-cost ventilator that could be made with a couple hundred dollars’ worth of material. He sent the plans to his Dad and asked him if he could make something like that.

Peter was confident that he could.

Graham then talked to a friend by the name of Dr. Matthew Toom. His father, Paul, is an engineer.

Paul drew up the plans, and Graham Brockley hooked him up with his Dad who basically took (the plans) and built it in a mere four days or so.

Peter is 87, but that hasn’t slowed him down one bit nor has it affected his astounding creativity. He said the project was and is very much a collaboration.

He also noted that Paul did the ‘computer stuff’ and that he (Peter) did the ‘mechanical stuff’.

“He’s doing the software and I’m doing the hardware.”

Prior to his teaching career, Peter worked as an oilfield machinist in Edmonton.

After retirement, the family moved to B.C. 20 years ago.

During their years in Stettler, Peter’s late wife, Noeline, privately taught music in town, and she also led the choir at the Stettler United Church.

For Peterson, becoming involved with this exciting new project kind of brings things full circle - back to a teacher that really instilled so much.

“He said we could build anything and make anything - that was taught to us and we have continued on with that thinking.”



Mark Weber

About the Author: Mark Weber

I've been a part of the Black Press Media family for about a dozen years now, with stints at the Red Deer Express, the Stettler Independent, and now the Lacombe Express.
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