Industrial Placement Mechanical Engineer Review

My role is acting as a support to the Plant Engineer assigned to a specific area of site. This involves fire-fighting activities to ensure manufacturing can continue. This includes carrying out Root Cause Analysis to solve problems and writing plant modifications when equipment needs to be changed. I attend daily meetings with cross-functional teams to coordinate production and plan in preventative maintenance activities.

My placement has allowed me to develop skills such as teamwork, leadership, time management, self-development, applying initiative to problem solving and many others. I have also developed my technical knowledge regarding things such as pumps, materials and flexible hose assemblies. Through coordinating with vendors I have also developed my professional communication skills. I have learnt discipline and working to deadlines from simply experiencing work life.

Yes, during my placement I was given my own actions to complete and see from start to finish. They were my own responsibility including speaking to the right people, coordinating tasks, problem solving and making decisions on solutions to problems. My own responsibility was increased throughout the year as I started off with having a lots of support which got less and less as I became more confident and my understanding of the site improved.

I received a really good amount of support. I had support from my manager and the site IP lead as well as from the Engineering Director and Mechanical Engineering Lead. I also received support from my mentor on the GSK graduate scheme as well as other grads and IPs on site. I was given more and more independence as my year progressed.

The site has a really friendly and welcoming environment. Due to it being situated in a small town there is a real community feel on site and everyone was very supportive and always happy to provide advice. The site is very inclusive and supportive of your personal life and handled the covid situation well.

I really enjoyed my placement year. I made lots of good friends and felt as though I was treated with a high amount of respect from everyone on site and was never made to feel like anything less than a fully integrated member of the team.

Yes

Apply early and look on the GSK website so that you fully understand the core values of GSK as these heavily influence your success during the application process. Don't be put off by the locations available as although it was daunting for me to move to Scotland I feel as though I have grown a lot as a person and it is an opportunity that I would have regretted not taking.