Engineering Services Engineer Review

by National Oilwell Varco

This review was submitted over 4 years ago, so some of the information it contains may no longer be relevant.

Rating

3.1/5
  • The Role
    4.3
  • The Company
    2.2
  • The Culture
    2.3

    The Role

  • 1. To what extent did you enjoy your work placement or internship?
  • I throughly enjoyed my placement year. I quickly realised that I had to approach the real world of work with a positive attitude in order to get the best out of the time I spent at NOV. I made sure to keep occupied at the weekends and during the evening which meant that I turned up to work each day feeling refreshed and ready to learn.

    4/5

  • 2. To what extent did you feel valued by your colleagues?
  • I believe that I was very highly regarded by my boss and my colleagues. I played key roles in very big, commercial projects and my engineering skill set, as developed at university, was relied upon by the firm. This tremendous responsibility, although daunting at times, forced me to learn quickly and adapt to the realities of industry.

    5/5

  • 3. To what extent were you given support and guidance by management/your supervisor(s)?
  • My first two weeks involved basic training in addition to compulsory site tours, health, safety and other HR inductions. Throughout my placement I felt very comfortable asking any question - 'it's better to be safe than sorry' motto was quoted frequently. I was able to receive a timely response to any question I posed. Formal training, as enforced by NOV was limited, but for the most cases, learning on the job was sufficient.

    4/5

  • 4. How busy were you on a daily basis?
  • I was very, very busy for the majority of my placement year - if anything a little too busy! However, by rammed packed schedule, with lots of deadlines meant that my days in the office flew by and the year disappeared into thin air. At times, I was made to work unpaid overtime, in order to meet challenging deadlines, but I feel this taught me a lot about the harsh realities of heavy industry.

    4/5

  • 5. How much responsibility were you given during your placement?
  • I was given enormous amounts of responsibility from project to project. For one of the larger projects on my placement year I had to provide deliverables on a daily basis, to be transmitted direct to client. In addition to this I was responsible for providing CAD engineers with sufficient work and checking their work before transmitting direct to client. I was honored to have such responsibilities within the branch but this meant I was very busy!

    5/5

  • 6. To what extent did/will the skills you developed, and training you received, assist you in your degree studies and beyond?
  • My time management and crises management skills have developed enormously. I have also learned a lot about the organising and planning required for very large scale engineering projects and difficulties thereof. I will take back a much improved CAD skill set to my degree and my improved knowledge of composite materials and composite structures will help for my degree modules next year.

    5/5

    The Company

  • 7. What was the general atmosphere in your office?
  • During busy times for the company everyone was very tired and generally bogged down in overwhelming workloads, my self included. However, even during these times everyone in the engineering department was very relaxed and there were plenty of jokes thrown around the office, which made the job fun. During the not so busy times, everyone was very relaxed and had time for self teaching and self improvement, albeit via iMechE courses or similar.

    4/5

  • 8. How well organised was the overall work placement or internship set up?
  • As I understand, I was the first intern for the Plymouth branch where I worked. Due to the friendly, laid back, and relaxed atmosphere of the workplace, my placement worked well and I was able to cover a wide variety of areas within the company. My works ranged from R & D to isometric drawings production. NOV HR, based off site answered my questions in a timely manner but I was never put in contact with other interns working at other NOV sites which is a shame. It would have been good to meet/witness the works carried out by NOV nationwide - not just Plymouth.

    4/5

  • 9. In terms of personal training and development, to what extent did the company or firm invest in you?
  • I was able to work on at least one project from each different sector within their engineering services department, but often felt I had to make clear that this is what I wanted - I was there to learn after all. I was fortunate to shadow a colleague on an off-site scanning job. However, for 99% of my time at the firm I learned on the job and had to provide deliverables. There was always a pressure on me to output work, rather than 'just learn'.

    2/5

  • 10. What were the perks on your work placement?
  • Healthcare/Dental

    1/5

  • 11. How appealing are future employment prospects within the organisation?
  • I have not yet been offered any formal offers or discussion regarding my future at the firm outside of my placement role, despite the company being short of staff. Given the little investment in my skill set whilst at the firm I am not hopeful which is a shame.

    2/5

    The Culture

  • 12. Was there a good social scene amongst any fellow placement students/colleagues?
  • I was not aware of any social scene outside of working hours. I could not even say whether other staff members socialised outside of work together or not! Strange. I certainly did not partake in any social events outside of work. Very few staff attended the Christmas dinner as this was not paid for by the company.

    1/5

  • 13. What was the cost of living and socialising in the area you worked in?
  • Very cheap. Plymouth is a cheap city to live in compared with my University town - Bath. This was a welcome relief.

    4/5

  • 14. What was the Nightlife like in the area you worked?
  • Nightlife in Plymouth is good as there is Plymouth University and the Barbican. A good venue with lots of students keen for a club night.

    4/5

  • 15. Were there many opportunities to get involved in activities outside of work?
  • No. Not much more I can say unfortunately.

    1/5

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Details

Placement (10 Months+)

South West

February 2017


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