Process Development Engineer Review

Day to day tasks can vary immensely. A lot of my time is spent planning shampoo and conditioner trials, this involves booking out the rig, requesting materials to be weighed out and writing up a PFD in advance of the trial date. On the day of a trial I would go down to the Pilot plant and manufacture the shampoo take samples, carry out QC tests and record my findings

I have learnt a variety of skills during my time on this placement, too many to mention. Things that stand out would be time management especially during the pandemic I have been forced to pay more attention to how I spend my work day weather I am working in the office or from home. Also my communication has improved since being concise and to the point is vital to effectively convey my findings from my trials

I have been given a lot of responsibility during my time at Unilever. I am treated as just another engineer and not a student so I am responsible for my own projects which I carry out and report back to my line manager. Certain projects of note have even allowed me to present to the director of our department which was great to se my work appreciated. I am also free to work how I please. I can plan which days I come on to site according to mine and my colleagues needs.

My initial few weeks in the role were spent in training. Since there is a lot to take on board my training is split between in person training and online courses. The wider team is very friendly and more than happy to help. I shadowed a few batches in my first week to get up to speed and by the end of the first month I was making my own shampoos and conditioner. My line manager also checked in with me regularly to make sure I was getting along ok.

The overall company culture has been great. As mentioned everyone has been super friendly. However due to the pandemic my exposure to clubs and other activities as such has been quite limited since they have been put on pause for the time being. In terms of local initiatives, I can give the example of our Christmas party which did not go ahead due to the lockdown restrictions and so our budget for that was donated to a local charity for a good cause.

I have really enjoyed my time here at Unilever. As mentioned the team have been great to work with and my line manager has left my placement relatively open allowing my dictate where I want to go with it. The work I have been involved with has also been quite interesting and can vary a lot which keeps it from becoming too boring. Sometimes you can get stuck in a project which is a bit repetitive but that's to be expected anywhere.

Yes

I'm not too sure to be honest. The application process consists of a CV, cover letter and a single interview. For the CV there is not much to say but as for the cover letter make sure to talk about why you would like to work for Unilever and be sure to speak of the companies current news and how and why you are interested in working here. As for the interview, it consists of a technical and personal questions. For the technical questions you don't have to know the answer but you should show how your thinking process.