30 Under 30: The Momentum Continues

Keenan Jensen, Manufacturing Engineer, Skuld LLC.

Since joining Skuld LLC (Piqua, OH) in late 2024, Manufacturing Engineer Keenan Jensen has quickly become a key contributor to the company’s advancement in lost foam investment casting and its patent-pending additive manufacturing evaporative casting process.

A 2023 Manufacturing Engineering graduate from Tennessee Tech, he brought early leadership experience from a previous foundry role and immediately applied it to Skuld’s growing machining and tooling operations.

Keenan led the selection and installation of two major machining investments — a Mazak VC-Ez 32 KY vertical machining center for metal and a 4×8 Shop Sabre for foam — and taught himself to program both systems. The Mazak supports the production of foam-blowing tooling for styrofoam patterns, while the Shop Sabre enables direct machining of foam patterns for casting.

His first major project paired him with Skuld’s 83-year-old veteran tool designer on a highly complex tooling program for heat-treat baskets. Keenan completed all machining programming for what would traditionally be a multimillion-dollar lost foam tooling package, with outsourced machining alone valued at more than $200,000. The high cost of outsourcing helped justify bringing CNC capability in-house. The resulting tools contain 164 inserts and can be configured to create more than 6,000 heat-treat basket design combinations.

Keenan’s second tool marked an even bigger step forward — he designed it entirely himself. This advanced tooling supports the production of pump components for cooling AI data centers. He handled the machine programming, managed in-house operations, coordinated the required five-axis outsourcing and put in significant extra hours to complete the project ahead of the Thanksgiving deadline. He also programmed and oversaw the machining of the foam patterns for initial prototypes.

Today, Keenan has established himself as Skuld’s go-to resource for CNC operations, lost foam tooling and complex pattern machining. He has also developed growing expertise in polymer-foam machining and polymer 3D printing, strengthening Skuld’s capabilities as it advances its innovative casting technologies.

Keenan’s rapid development, technical curiosity and commitment to excellence make him a standout emerging leader.