Industrial Placement Engineering Review

I thoroughly enjoyed my time on placement at Cummins Turbo Technologies. This was due to the great friends I was able to make during my time here with the other placement students but also with the full time staff here at CTT. The placement scheme was really enjoyable giving students an insight into 3 different departments each for 4 months. This allowed the students to learn lots and find which types of engineering they enjoy the most.

While on placement I felt very valued as an engineer with my inputs always considered and listened to. I was treated throughout my time at CTT as another engineer and was given much greater responsibilities than I though that I would. This year has really shown me how much a placement student at CTT is valued. Opportunities to get involved in sports and social events was also available to placement students.

At CTT the training calendar is made available to all staff including placement students. This allows the students to book onto the training sessions that they need to support and guide them in their work. This formal structure was very effective at supporting the students but also the full time staff too. Alongside this formal training all the engineers at CTT were always very helpful in sharing their knowledge to help and support placement students. The balance is also very good between being given the training before then being given the responsibility to go and complete the work.

The nature of the rotation plan for the placement at CTT does mean that the work load varies department to department. This is either down the amount of work the department has to do and the supervisor for the student in the department with regard to how they manage the students work load. For the most part the students at CTT are given a very good work load that is not only enough so the student is kept busy but not overloaded too. The work is also varied due to the rotation plan so the students are kept busy with different engineering jobs on a day to day basis.

Placement students at CTT are valued and given large amounts of responsibility I believe when compared to other placement schemes. I had opportunities to present to customers and management while also being given the opportunity to work on many high priority business critical projects. This shows the level of responsibility given to placement students.

I have developed many skills during my time at CTT. This has included a mixture of technical engineering skills such as my thermal fluid science and materials science knowledge. But it has also included training on specialist equipment such as an scanning electron microscope and interferometer which I will be able to use at university. I've also been able to develop my soft skills such as time management and prioritisation. These will be very important in assisting me in my final year of study. I've also been able to develop my presentation skills and many other soft skills.

The general atmosphere in my office was very positive. The environment encouraged productivity and was always friendly which is a testament to the staff at CTT. They were always happy to help with any queries or questions that I had. The layout of the office is also helpful in promoting this environment sitting in departments with an easy layout so that if anyone did have a query they knew where to go and who to ask.

The placement scheme is extremely well organised and has been refined year upon year to give the students the best value placement and focuses on improving year upon year. The placement is organised from before you even start, there is a meet and greet day organised for all the successful applicants where they are all able to meet one another and have an introduction to the company. Upon starting there is an induction week that helps settle the students and is organised to give relevant training and company standard etc. The rotations are very well organised and the feedback is also structured very well.

I believe that the company has invested considerably in my development and personal training. I have been on multiple training sessions organised and put on by CTT. I have also been given licences to specialist engineering software packages which CTT must pay for in order for me to practice and develop my engineering skills with different software. There are opportunities for further summer placements and if a student is particularly successful there are also opportunities to be sponsored.

Future prospects with CTT are good and this is evident based on the number of successful engineers now in lead engineer or even management roles that began as a placement student. CTT also runs a very successful graduate scheme that like the placement scheme has also been revised over a number of years and is constantly being improved. Being a part of this graduate programme at CTT is very appealing and as a placement student you will already have a step up on other applicants that have not had experience within the company.

The social scene on placement I believe was good, Huddersfield as a place is only a short train journey from either Manchester or Leeds. The social scene for students is good and the fact that there were over 20 placement students in total (including non-engineering) meant there was always something going on from weekends away and holidays, nights out and even sport. The sports and social club at CTT is also very good with different sports including football, squash, golf and badminton all offered at a discounted rate that placement students can make the most of.

The cost of living within Huddersfield is manageable while on placement. The wage from CTT was sufficient to pay for accommodation and living costs while also having enough money to spend as disposable income. Socialising costs were also relatively low as the town had a large population of students businesses often cater for this and offer student rates and there are student bars available.

The nightlife in Huddersfield was not as good as Manchester or Leeds as they are both bigger cities. The fact that it is easy to get to either Manchester or Leeds makes the nightlife while on placement better. Regarding Huddersfield it can be good however is very quiet when the university students are not here. The fact that CTT also employs multiple students means often there are many students on a night out anyway.

There were opportunities to get involved in activities out side of work but these were often planned and organised by placement students but this is the benefit of having a large number of students at CTT. There are also opportunities to get involved in IMechE events which are advertised. There are activities to do out side of work also in Huddersfield, the town has just had a new leisure centre built and the country side around Huddersfield is also very picturesque and a nice place to go walking while there are also nice restaurants in Huddersfield and if they don't suit you there's many more in either Leeds or Manchester.