April 22, 2024
Tyler Wortman came to Nebraska as a Husker Football walk-on, got hands-on experience in Dr. Shane Farritor’s lab on campus and graduated with a BS and an MS in mechanical engineering. Now, with an MIT doctorate in hand, he’s designing and building pharmacy fulfillment centers for Amazon.
What originally drew you to engineering?
My fascination with math, science, and problem-solving from a young age naturally led me to engineering. As a child, I enjoyed dismantling everything to understand how it worked. My father owned a landscaping and irrigation company and I would join him in the office where he taught me how to draft underground irrigation systems designs by hand. This experience showed me how to translate theoretical concepts into real-world solutions.
Talk about your work with Pill Pack/Amazon.
I’m currently the senior manager of pharmacy engineering with Amazon. During PillPack’s early stages, I assumed various roles and contributed wherever most needed at the time, reflecting the typical startup environment. Some examples of my responsibilities included: designing and prototyping pharmacy-related consumer devices, supply chain development including sourcing and managing contract manufacturers and designing pharmacy operational layouts.
After the acquisition, I formed a new Amazon engineering team responsible for pharmacy fulfillment center design, implementation, testing, and optimization. My multi-disciplined team comprises industrial, manufacturing, process, mechanical, electrical and controls engineers. I also oversee a group of program managers and pharmacists who are responsible for managing our real estate, building launch process, and pharmacy automation suppliers.
I enjoy my job because I get to broadly influence the business direction and each day presents a new challenge, preventing any sense of monotony and keeping me consistently engaged. I’m passionate about my work at Amazon because I get to help people maintain or improve their health. The personal stories we’ve received help convey the positive and sometimes life-changing impact we have made.
You’ve talked about not having time for internships while you were playing for Husker Football but were able to get some hands-on experience as a grad student through internships and in Shane Farritor’s lab. Talk a bit about what you did in the lab and how that helped you after graduating from Nebraska.
Being a D1 athlete is a full-time, year-round job so when received my Bachelor’s degree, I had limited real-world experience as a mechanical engineer and was undecided on which industry to pursue. I was presented with an excellent opportunity to join Dr. Farritor’s lab and stay in academia while performing graduate school research. One of Dr. Farritor’s research topics was biomedical device design and he had connections with NASA, two areas that I was interested in.
While in Dr. Farritor’s lab, I was able to design, fabricate, assemble, and test three different generations of surgical robots. I received real-time feedback to improve my designs by participating in several live surgeries where trained surgeons piloted my robots in the comparative medicine lab at UNMC. During the summertime, I held internships at the NASA Jet Propulsion Lab and Honeybee Robotics, where I worked on engineering designs supporting the Mars rovers. The internships and lab research allowed me to apply my classroom knowledge and refine my career direction.
As a Husker Football player, you worked your way from a walk-on scout team player to a starting linebacker with a scholarship. What kept you motivated?
I spent my childhood in Nebraska watching the Huskers win three National Championships, so there was no other team that I wanted to play college football for. I was proud to be a Husker and I was willing to do anything to support the team, even if that meant I would have never made it further than a walk-on scout team player. The team is a brotherhood and I never wanted to let them down. I stayed focused on priorities and kept working hard to make the team better. Eventually, my dedication paid off, and I progressively rose to become a starting linebacker with a scholarship my senior year.
The internships and lab research allowed me to apply my classroom knowledge and refine my career direction.
Was there someone at Nebraska that had a big impact on you?
I’ve been fortunate to have Dr. Shane Farritor as an exceptional mentor in my life. We are both from Central Nebraska and alumni of UNL and MIT. He has consistently offered me invaluable guidance regarding my career and personal endeavors. Dr. Farritor has extended numerous opportunities my way and encouraged me to apply for my Ph.D. at MIT. His influence has been pivotal in shaping my journey, and I owe much of my current position to his support and mentorship.
Is there one thing you learned in your time at Nebraska that you’ve taken with you and continue to use every day?
One key lesson that I carry with me daily is the importance of patience and perseverance. My experience at Nebraska strengthened my work ethic and resilience, helping me navigate life’s challenges with determination and the understanding that meaningful achievements are not typically fast or easy.
Is there anything you hope to accomplish in your lifetime — either through engineering or otherwise?
Professionally, I aim to develop innovative and scalable solutions to real-world problems, improving efficiency and quality of life. On a broader scale, I seek to share my engineering knowledge and network, enabling the next generation of engineers to achieve their dreams. My objective is to leave a positive impact, whether through my own technological advancements or by inspiring others to excel in their endeavors.
What advice would you give to a college student looking to accomplish big things?
Everyone’s journey is different, and the path is rarely a straight line. Don’t stress over challenges along the way but instead embrace the unpredictability as a source of learning and growth. Surround yourself with people who inspire and challenge you. Seek out mentors, peers, and colleagues who possess diverse perspectives and skill sets. These interactions will not only broaden your horizons but also provide you with fresh insights and solutions to tackle complex problems.