Production Control & Logistics Placement Review

Overall I found work at Faurecia very enjoyable. I worked in the Production Control and Logistics deparment for over a year in the Fradley office. I loved the people that I worked with and I was given responsibility early on but not too much. The main drawback I would say would be the location.

My colleagues were amazing. The people in my department were welcoming and made an effort to make sure that I knew what I was doing and that I was comfortable. This made me feel at ease right away which is what you want when you are properly working for the first time and you are away from home.

My manager and supervisor both took an interest in developing my skills throughout my placement. Pre-dominantly it was my supervisor, he made sure I took ownership for a project and had real responsibility from the moment I joined. Most of the training we were provided with was on-the-job training and we all had specific roles however there was always someone around to guide you if you did not know what you were doing.

I really enjoyed how busy I was. There were times where I had finished my work and I 'didn't have anything to do' and even times when I didn't feel stretched in what I was doing but I think it's as much on you to take on more work and more responsibility as it is on the business to give it to you.

Overall I have given this an eight as I was given a decent amount of responsibility for a placement student. I was doing very important work for someone who had never had a 'proper' job before. At first it felt like I was given too much responsibilty (simply because I hadn't done any of these jobs before) and then I felt the pressure ease when I got used to it. Towards the end of my placement I felt like I had too little and I was given an important project.

There is no doubt that the people skills I developed during my placement helped me in my final year of university and now at my graduate scheme. I massively adanced my excel skills also which have been invaluable as it is used in almost every role in a working environment.

There was a happy atmosphere at my plant, everyone was welcoming and was in good spirits throughout. There was often events on to raise money for charity or for 'Being Faurecia', a day celebrating all things Faurecian. Everybody would get involved, making the most of the day and contributing to the positive atmostphere of the plant.

The placement was very well organised. I particularly liked how all of the undergrads were brought to a hotel in Leamington Spa to meet each other at the beginning of our placement where we stayed over and then again at the end of the placement. We were put in touch with each other before we started which gave us a chance to find houses together and get to know each other.

Faurecia have a fantastic graduate scheme and operate globally so they give the option of working abroad for a number of years which is incredibly appealing. Financially speaking they don't pay that much but it is still a lot more than other places. I would highly recommend this company to others.

My cohort kept somewhat to themselves however there were times where we would do something outside of work. I think it is just luck of the draw whether you get social people or people that tend to stick to themselves. Luckily I lived with people from SpareRoom which turned out to be fun.

I rented a en-suite room on Spareroom.com for £400 a month which had a double bed and included bills. The woman turned out to be horrible so I moved halfway through my placement from Fradley to Lichfield into a single room which was tiny but fine and it cost £220 a month. So you can find cheap places to stay! Food and drink was pretty standard, about £4/5 a pint so not that cheap.

The nightlife in Lichfield is pretty bad. The only good place is Walkabout as well as a couple of cool pubs. Luckily Birmingham is only about 40 mins away on the train (If I remember correctly) and the nightlife there is substantially better! Again, Fradley (where the plant is) has about one pub so no night life.