Body Engineering Closures - Graduate Trainee/Project Engineer Review

It started off slow because the department that I went into wasn't necessarily the one that I had been hoping for and isn't the most glamorous sounding, however once I had had a chance to get into the subject and learn the ropes it became far more interesting and engaging. Spending the time to learn the detail shows just how complicated and interesting such a simple and dull sounding job area (such as door seals) actually is. The phrase "Don't judge a book by its cover" rings true.

Once I had settled in and learnt my area I became one of the "experts" on one of the parts I became a useful member of the team, able to pull together information and advise others regarding my subject area.

Great amount of support, mainly from colleagues that I was working with and supporting them in turn while I was getting my feet in the business. Generally if you ask about something and someone knows the answer or can help they will do, even if all they are able to do is advise where you might be able to find the information yourself. There is also plenty or information and support available on the company intranet so that you can look to find things out for yourself.

There were of course ups and downs in activity levels at certain times of the year. For example during the launch of the Range Rover Evoque everything was pretty hectic trying to solve any problems that were found during the build while at quiet points, such as the week before the Christmas break it became quite quiet and relaxed with a lot of people taking holidays. However, overall I feel there was a good balance of work, there was always something available to work on while there wasn't so much being forced upon you that you couldn't focus on any one project to completion.

I think this is directly related to how much to take. I was given several projects to work on over my time here at Jaguar Land Rover that I was effectively in charge of and made decisions regarding which direction to head in, it took a while in some cases to realise just how much control I actually had over where I went, and if I asked if my manager/supervisor where he thought it needed to go or for some advice/feedback then he would make suggestions but otherwise generally leave it up to myself to decide on course of action.

I think that everything that I have learnt from my placement here will assist greatly with future endeavours. Even if the content of the area that I have been working in doesn't come in that useful the personal development and experience will help greatly. I have become much more confident in myself and my abilities than I was when I started. I have always been quite quiet and assumed that others generally know more or better if they have been working on something for longer but I now have more confidence in myself and my knowledge, so that I can put out what I know as well and challenge points of contention if needed. I am also now a lot more confident when it comes to contacting people, I used to avoid phoning people like the plague unless I had already met them and had some idea of what to expect from them when they answered the phone, preferring instead to drop people an email. This is not always productive, however, as in some cases you need a quick answer and people don't always reply to emails quickly or even read them unless they are expecting them and so over the year I have forced myself to start making calls when needed and now are much more confident, to the point where at least my mind no longer blanks when the guy answers on the other end! I also got myself on a CAD training course for one of the main packages used in the industry - Catia V5 and TeamCentre share point. I only had time to do a 1 week basic overview course but it was still enough to get access to the program and be able to develop my knowledge and usage from the basics and my experience with other CAD packages.

There is constant activity. Where I was working was in the main Gaydon Design Engineering Centre (GDEC) which has multiple floors. the upper floors are massive open plan offices where you can effectively see from one end to the other of the building (this is where I was based), there is a great feeling of space and activity. Everyone is friendly and it is easy to walk across the office and find someone you need to or want to talk to, whether about work or the greater issues of the world. At one side of this the floors end in balconies over the "Street" which runs the length of the building on the ground floor. This has a small cafe, a Costa coffee cart and various tables where people can sit to have lunch or meetings. There are also regular displays by different companies and functions advertising their work as well as internal department displays, all of which can be very interesting to have a look at. Leading onto the street there are also various other functions including Teardown and the design prototyping department, and you can sometimes glimpse the clay models and prototype design builds being moved down the street between the Design workshop and storage areas.

Other than a couple of starting issues where my manager was elsewhere supporting launch issues and finding out what accounts and user-names need to be set up the placement was well set up and organised. We occasionally got emails from the HR representative to let us know if we needed to fill anything in or let them know any details but otherwise you are treated like a full time employee with the same or similar expectations and perks.

There are some mandatory training sessions that you have to complete online as part of the induction process and further sessions that occasionally pop up to keep you up to date with the company but otherwise it seems that if there is something that you want to do training in, and it is within reason and relevant, then just ask and then organise a session to go to on the online training system. I myself booked into complete a CAD training course to allow me to gain access to the Catia and TeamCentre systems which all of the companies design CAD work is done on to allow me to do cover a broader selection of work. When I asked about it the only limitation was that, as it was half way through my placement already, my manager didn't want to lose me for the 3 weeks that the full course takes and so I had to look to see if I could find a shorter course. I ended up completing a 1 week managers overview course which covered all of the basics that I needed to use the system and then learn from that based on my previous experience with other CAD programs.

Doing the placement means that I effectively have my foot in the door to help me get back in. Employment prospects with the company look very attractive and because I have completed a placement here and performed to satisfaction there is the chance to short-cut back in for further placements and the Graduate scheme without having to reapply and go through all of the assessment centres again. If the company is open to hiring more placement students at the time then you are pretty much guaranteed an invitation back in.

There is apparently a very good social scene amount placement students and graduates, with a bar in Leamington Spa where most of them go. I was however living with my parents for the year out in the countryside and so wasn't in a position to be there with ease and wasn't as aware of anything going on. If you were sharing a house with other placement students, on the other hand, I understand there was plenty going on.

I was living with my parents so other than transport costs I was fairly well off. From the comments on the company placement Facebook page the accommodation available in Leamington Spa is good and well priced. Leamington is also within cycling distance of both sites if you don't have a car and the company has a lift-share program that you can get onto to reduce travel costs. I got to see one of the houses that some fellow placement students were living in at one point and it was very nice. Living in Leamington is central and allows easy journeys to both the Gaydon and Whitley sites, which is where placements are generally based. There are also plenty of pubs, clubs and bars available in Leamington and Coventry of varying cost.

There is a good selection of bars, pubs and clubs available in Leamington and Coventry for those interested to suit various tastes. They are mostly focused along the main Leamington Parade that runs through the centre of town. Leamington is also where the majority of Warwick University students live and go out and is the main town for all the local surrounding towns and villages for bit nights out, so there is plenty going on.

If you knew who was interested and organised them then there are plenty of opportunities for outside activities. But you have to know the right people and have them aware that you are interested so you are on the mailing lists.