Summer 2026 Engineering Internship
THE OPPORTUNITY:
We are seeking a motivated 3rd or 4th year student to join our team as our Mechanical Engineering Intern for an exciting summer project. This internship will be associated with a single design project that will be deployed at our Garment Dyeing Facility. This internship will provide hands-on exposure to a real-world engineering application in a fast-paced manufacturing environment. This will not be a general engineering experience, but a project-based and results-based experience.
The intern will work closely with leaders and cross-functional stakeholders in the project while gaining practical experience in mechanical systems, product quality, and operational efficiency.
The ideal candidate must be a fast learner, a bold self-starter, and ready to work on the shop floor.
This is an on-site position based in Detroit Lakes, MN. Hybrid hours will be considered on a case-by-case basis.
Schedule: Monday-Friday, 8a-4:30p, up to 40 hours per week
Duration: Summer 2026
Join us and be a part of a company that values teamwork, innovation, and making work enjoyable every day! The starting wage range for this position is $20/hour.
Project Description
Our garment dyeing facility produces over 300,000 custom dyed garments each month to support our screenprinting and embroidery decorating operations. Garment dyeing generally utilizes one of two processes - Pigment or Reactive and Lakeshirts uses both methods to produce different looks. This project is centered on the Reactive Dye process which chemically bonds the dye agents to material fibers. This chemical reaction is created in a pH and temperature-controlled bath and requires salt and alkali additions to promote dye-fiber bonding.
The purpose of this project is to design-to-scale a system that substitutes sodium sulfate brine for sodium chloride brine in the reactive process with an end goal of reducing chlorides released into the wastewater system. The State of Minnesota has adopted federals standards for chloride reduction in wastewater and the local municipality and treatment facility are challenged with meeting the new standard by 2033.
Proof of concept testing has yielded successful results, meaning that color matching results between the two salts has proven successful with minor formula changes.
Key Responsibilities
Learning Opportunities
Required Qualifications
Helpful Qualifications
Work Environment
OUR CULTURE TRULY SETS US APART. Life at Lakeshirts is all about embracing our core values, having fun, and working with great people who make every day an opportunity to thrive. We're looking for those who want to roll up their sleeves and make an impact while enjoying a culture that values creativity, teamwork, continuous improvement, and empowering each team member to define and elevate their success. We also foster a strong sense of community and are dedicated to wowing our customers on the daily.
LIFE'S BETTER IN A T-SHIRT & SO IS WORK! Here's what you can expect when you join the Lakeshirts team:
Cognitive or Mental Requirements of the Job:
Employee must be able to see and hear, read and write. Requires good judgment, people-oriented, flexible organized diplomatic, reliable, enthusiastic, courteous, helpful, patience.
Physical Demands:
Occasionally: Lifts, Carries, Pushes, Pulls, Climbs, Balances, Bends, Twists, Crawls, Reaches, Lifts 25-50lbs, Carries 25-50lbs, , Reaches at above or below shoulder height
Frequently Lifts and Carries 10-24lbs
Continuously Stands, Walks, Sits
NOTE: This job description is not intended to be all-inclusive and should in no way be considered a contract or guarantee of employment. Employee may perform other related duties as needed, based on the ongoing needs of the business. Minnesota is an Employment-At-Will state and implies no specific length of employment.
Lakeshirts is a custom apparel decorating company that started in our owner’s parents’ basement in 1984. We have since grown to an $200 million+ company in a 275,000 square foot facility. Our production floor includes 48 automatic screenprint presses, 32 multi-head embroidery machines, six 60-foot laser appliqué bridges, three sublimation presses, and a number of dogs running around the place.
Lakeshirts sales continue to grow, as does its profitability, due to the hard work and continuous improvement efforts of its 500+ employees and over 60 nation-wide reps.
Lakeshirts provides decorated apparel to thousands of customers in the resort and college markets, being a preferred choice to customers based on its breadth of great designs, great garments in its inventory, and reliable and responsive delivery.
With more than 40 artists on our staff, we create thousands of pieces of art each year, giving each customer a unique look. We have over 100 bodystyles in stock, and each one comes in a multitude of colors, totaling more than 1,000,000 pieces in our inventory.
This is all done in a culture that reflects respect, community, and fun. Our culture is second-to-none and must be experienced to be truly understood. If you happen to be in the lakes area, we invite you to stop in and see for yourself. We always enjoy visits, and we’re proud to show off the community that we’ve called “home” for all of our lives. And if you happen to bring along a Milk Bone or two with you, we know you’ll make some very quick and deep friendships.
Life’s Better in a T-shirt
