South Texas College is helping students like Jaden Hernandez discover a future in manufacturing close to home with its annual Manufacturing Day celebration.

High-entropy alloys, particularly refractory variants, are promising materials for extreme environments like aerospace and nuclear energy due to their high-temperature resilience. However, machining these alloys is challenging due to their hardness, brittleness, and poor thermal conductivity, which cause microcracks and thermal damage. Traditional laser methods exacerbate thermal issues, limiting precision. A new technique, water-jet guided laser (WJGL), uses a high-pressure water jet and shielding gas as a waveguide to couple lasers. This method eliminates the need for precise focus alignment and offers superior cooling, reducing heat-affected zones and surface defects. WJGL achieves ultra-clean interfaces, minimal taper drilling (0.014°), and maintains material integrity. The study highlights its advantages over conventional nanosecond and femtosecond lasers, with applications in critical manufacturing sectors.