Design / Development Engineer Review

Caterpillar has been a welcoming and friendly environment for the last twelve months, right from the start. I find my colleagues are approachable and happy to help with any concerns or questions I may have. Overall, the work I have been assigned has been interesting, widely varying, and above all enjoyable; and I feel I have learnt a great deal from my experience.

I feel that placement students at Caterpillar are highly valued by the team, thanks to a generally high level of enthusiasm and quality of output at our level of experience. We are entrusted to complete tasks with a reasonable level of responsibility and importance; and are generally praised for a job well-done. Our contribution towards projects and meeting deadlines is appreciated.

My supervisors have given a good amount of support towards my development as an engineer, and with other matters such as required pieces of work for University, and affiliation with the Institute of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE). Typically I found that the most support I received on a day-to-day basis was from colleagues that were responsible for my workload, such as senior engineers and graduates who had been in my shoes several years previously.

Due to the nature of the business, the quantity and timescale of work peaks and troughs with time. That being said, my supervisors were always receptive to any concerns I raised if I felt I had too much or too little work; and where necessary would either help me to delegate, take overtime if I was happy to, or find additional work from other departments.

A large quantity of the work I was given contributed towards a product for a customer, and typically there was a reasonable cost associated; such as manufacturing time and materials, which had to be taken into account. On several occasions, I was required to liaise directly with suppliers, and had to ensure to uphold a positive relationship between the businesses.

I have learnt a great deal from my placement year - more than I anticipated. Not only have I developed a good understanding of practicing engineering in industry, and the challenges that typically face engineers; but I have made great strides in my administrative, collaborative and interpersonal skills. Furthermore, I have had the opportunity to test and improve on my core engineering skills from experienced professionals.

I found that the office was a positive work environment which achieved a good balance of quiet and professionalism to allow you to get on with work, whilst maintaining a relaxed feel so as not to be uncomfortable. It was acceptable to move around, hold informal meetings, and listen to music (as long as it didn't disturb others, and your attention could still be grabbed!). The office was open and clean, and a variety of formal and more informal meeting spaces are provided.

Generally the approach towards the workload of placement students and their movement between departments is left intentionally flexible, so as to suit the amount of work available at the time, and to meet the desires/needs of the student. This naturally can cause progression over the year to feel less organised; but better practices are clearly always being explored and worked on, aided by feedback directly from us.

My colleagues over the year have given a significant amount of their time towards helping me progress as both an employee and as an engineer, for which I'm very grateful. Any questions I had or help I asked for was quickly met with professional responses, no matter the complexity, or the time or effort it needed. In addition, I also had the opportunity to participate in a variety of Caterpillar's engineering training courses; and had the opportunity to visit trade shows where I could speak to professionals from across the industry to broaden my knowledge of the field.

As I near the end of my placement, I have been made aware of the opportunity to return to work at Caterpillar in the UK as a graduate, and the typical requirements of an ex-placement student to successfully enroll onto that scheme. After my experience this year, I would definitely take the opportunity to return to the company, either at my current site or another. A key appealing factor of working for Caterpillar is the variety of product sectors in which they operate - giving the opportunity for a truly varied career without having to leave the company.

As most of my placement colleagues lived a fair distance from the site (typically living at home) and commuted daily, it was more difficult to have a consistent social life with each other and with our colleagues. That being said, we aim to improve this with the new placement students by organising some social events during our 'cross-over period' to help them along! Other opportunities have always been available to socialise with each other and the rest of our teams; such as pub quiz nights, curry nights, a barbeque, and a trip to the local beer festival.

As I lived at home for the duration of my placement year, it is difficult to pass judgement on the cost of living and socialising in the area I worked in; but from the social activities I was able to take part in, I would say it was not too expensive, but certainly wasn't cheap. I saved a good amount of money towards my return to university by living at home for the year, and if you have the opportunity to do so, I would recommend it.

Again with not living in the area in which I worked, I cannot pass a perfect judgement. But, on the occasions I was able to head out with work, I would say that the area had a brilliant selection of pubs and bars (too many to count!) and a few decent night clubs. There seems a wide variety of options available to suit all budgets, and at no point did I feel unsafe walking the streets at night.

There was a good number of activities made available to us outside of work - widely varying to suit almost any taste! Some of the more novel include a chance to be part of a 'dragon-boat' rowing race for charity; and constructing a down-hill buggy for a charity competition. We were also regularly invited to join in with careers and outreach events across the region; which provided a good opportunity to develop our interpersonal skills.