Industrial Placement Review

On my 12 month Internship I rotated around three different departments within engineering. Rotating around the three departments was great opportunity to learn a variety of skills and was an aspect of my placement I really enjoyed. The employees at Cummins were in general very friendly and helpful which I felt really added to my placement.

I felt varying levels of being valued by colleges. I felt most valued in my last two departments where I was able to do real work and really help relieve the work load of other members of the team. I felt that the amount of value my colleagues put in me varied heavily from person to person but as a company I did feel a valued member of the team.

The training opportunities provided by Cummins were fantastic and covered a variety of subjects. If I ever had a question for my manger I found they were extremely helpful and very knowledgeable. Quarterly training calendars were sent out every four months and as a placement student I was allowed to join any training session I felt was of value. These training sessions were very informative and I really enjoyed this experience.

The amount of work fluctuated from day to day and from department to department but I did often feel there was not enough work for me to do. Sometimes there was too much work to do me at once, it would of been helpful if the department would of been able to even out the work amount.

I was really surprised and impressed by the amount of responsibility give to me during my placement. I worked on projects that were important to the company and engineers were often relying on me to do my task. During my time at Cummins I had numerous meetings with Customers and suppliers and often had to produce work for these meetings.

On placement I learnt numerous soft skills such as meeting etiquette which I did not get the opportunity to develop on my course at university. I also learnt lots of new skills in new software, programming skills and developed my knowledge in statistics to a level I never expected to achieve.

The office environment was friendly and there were free water facilities and a vending machine for tea and coffee. There were occasional small office event like an hour long coffee morning. Other office areas seemed to have a more vibrant and out going office environment. There was an office environment tam for every office on site.

Before Joining the company it was felt the information and email correspondence was sporadic and I often had to chase up for information. A document was provided to allow us to choose our department preferences but this lacked detail as was hard to understand for a non Cummins employee. Once I joined Cummins I was enrolled on an employee induction program. This program was three days long and very helpful. However on joining Cummins it took about three weeks for my computer to be set up correctly which affected my ability to start working.

Every quarter a training calendar was sent out and as a placement student I was able to join any of these training events. The training included general engineering principles, training in the fundamentals of turbocharging and in softer skills such as project management. All of the training was very well planned, informative and expanded on my knowledge gained at university.

The amount of employment opportunities for graduates varies from year to year depending on company performance. From what I have heard it is not always possible to apply to a particular department and instead it is where there is the opportunities. The company does offer sponsorship for people to come back but I am not sure how many people this offer is open to.

There were about 30 placement students on site and the socialization among placement students was limited. A lot of the students lived in the local area and so spent time at home instead of being with the other students. There were eight placement students that lived together and the social scene for these students was more vibrant.

The cost of living in Huddersfield is very low. Rent is extremely cheap for nice student houses. There are numerous supermarkets in the city center which fit any budget. The local bars and pubs were all reasonably priced. Tickets for local sporting events are cheap. The cost of getting to Huddersfield by train is quite expensive.

The nightlife in Huddersfield is limited, there are two nightclubs in Huddersfield and a few late night bars dotted around the town center. However there are a variety of pubs and local breweries to socialise in. In the summer there are local beer, food and music festivals which were all enjoyable.

There were numerous cycling and running clubs in Huddersfield as well as climbing, swimming and gym facilities. Huddersfield is also home to numerous parks. The town has a local university which has all the usual university clubs and societies which would be a great opportunity to learn something new and meet new people.