higher apprentice (trainee project engineer) operations department Review

my day to day work in the operations department is the most enjoyable part of my apprenticeship. i had completed most of my placements by christmas 2016 and have spent the last year learning the role of technical admin and project engineer with the guidance of a senior project engineer. my daily tasks would be running test & report projects and circuit breaker repair, overhaul and upgrate/retrofit of our Reyrolle vintage equipment for our customers in industry and in the transmission/distribution sector and their respective maintenance contractors. these small value, small duration projects have been supported by placements in other departments so i can see the processes which we normally don't see on the project management side. more recently i have been doing the day to day tasks for larger projects such as a 300 breaker contract with northern power grid where i organise the refurbishment of breakers in batches of 6 at substations around the country to bring them in for an enhancement which reduces trip forces. i have also just started a project which i'm leading which involves extending a switchboard for a large coal fired power station which produces over 6 x 660MW of generated power. this is exciting as it involves a more complex a technical product with a more stringent control requirement on the project lead due to the controlled environment when it comes to installing and the bespoke control/protection requirements of the panel. my main responsibilities are to update and distribute the resource chart to the guys in the field team and to the resource managers at head office on a weekly basis, attend meetings, general day to day running of projects numbering 5 - 8 at any one time, site work, purchase requisitions, safety documentation for my and other peoples jobs and i recently updated the job instruction sheet for use in the factory. i have started quality projects throughout my time in the operations department such as creating training for the new equipment we produce.

i have gained my HNC, my APK and an NVQ Level 2 whilst here at siemens. i halso have a safety passport and BESC Certificate to allow me onsite.

workplace is supportive and work is appropriate to my level, this keeps my confidence high, meeting frequency with line manager and nvq manager & assessors are sufficient that progress is kept in line.

the operations team leader is extremely supportive but challenges me and the project engineers i work with are hardworking and we all work with each other to ensure the delivery of projects. having direct contact with a customer throughout the life of a project is rewarding when you meet/exceed their expectations and recieve plaudits etc but the work in itself is as rewarding as it is challenging

at the beginning of the apprenticeship things were highly organized but due to changing business environment some placements have been missed/reduced. this has not had a huge impact as i have chosen my career progression

not a great deal besides marking and advice. at level four not much support is required

team leader is highly supportive with work related issues and access to support is discussed and reinforced well.

i think the wage is fair for an apprentice

we run charity initiatives in the community to raise our profile and awareness of important issues.

Yes

company with high standards who value their employees

apply for everything, anywhere. practice aptitude tests, the questions near the end will seem impossible but but think about the question in broader terms, try to spot overall patterns or ways of evaluating a most likely answer instead of dwelling. they can be a bit 'information overload of a simple concept'. research the company for the interview. i work for the energy management division of siemens and was asked what energy management means, i had read a few definitions and made a good conversation point about the sector. the experience you will get will depend on your enthusiasm to learn.