Written by: Birju Galaiya
Hey guys! It’s been a while since I wrote a blog-
assignments and courseworks have kept me busy. I now have a 3 week Easter break
where I plan to go through lecture contents and complete tutorial sheets. Oh
and also try work on 2 assignments! I hope to take a break and escape to the
peak district and also spend some time with relatives back in London before
coming back for the second part of this semester. But before that why don’t I
talk to you about the workshops I have had as an engineering student. In this
blog I will talk about my experience during a weeklong workshop known as the
‘Global Engineering Challenge’.
In the first year I did not have any exams in January
(such a relief!) but as a mechanical engineering student, it was compulsory to
undertake a week-long workshop just before the second semester began. Students
from most of the departments were involved including Civil, Chemical, ACSE,
Aerospace engineering. Since we were about 900 students, we were split into
teams of 5 students all studying different courses. Groups were put into
different rooms known as ‘Hubs’ where a postgraduate facilitator guided us
through the week.
Our task was to come
up with a sustainable engineering solution to help rural Vietnamese people
living in the Mekong Delta which was one of the poorest regions. We had several
options on what we could do- improving sanitation, using renewable energy to
power the houses, ensuring the water is safe to drink and perhaps using a
suitable material to build houses. I was excited about having this opportunity
to put into use the academic knowledge I had gained in my first semester and
also solve the challenges involved. Being in a group of five, all doing
different courses, we knew that we should select an idea taking into account
the skills set we possessed as a group. Having two mechanical and one
electrical engineer, we decided that finding a solution for a reliable source
of energy was ideal for us. Although all other options were tempting to
undertake, we used our decision making skills to choose a solution that would
suit us the best- reliable source of energy.
Taking initiative, I became the group leader
and ensured we had a goal that we would try achieve. As the week went by, I
enjoyed working with the group members I had- they were friendly, enthusiastic
and we didn’t have major disputes. During that week it was snowing so we
decided to use the snow as an opportunity to have a team bonding session. Yes-
we made a snowman! It was especially fun for me because it was the first time I
had seen snow (apart from movies obviously). I think this made the team
stronger and more determined to win the challenge.
Coming up with a pioneering solution to the problem
required us to work as a team by brainstorming about the design, reliability
and viability of different types of renewable energy solutions like solar
power, wind energy or harnessing the energy of the water in the river nearby. After
choosing solar panels we researched about the numerous factors
such as maintenance required, optimum size of panels, and safety of equipment
including the battery. We finally estimated the costs of the design and presented
it to staff and fellow colleagues explaining the decisions we made. Although our solution did not win, our confidence in
presenting it led us to win the ‘Best Communicated Solution’ award for the hub. We
were really happy because not only did we get a certificate, we also got
cup-cakes to celebrate our victory in style!
I gained so many skills- teambuilding, leadership,
inter-personal skills, creativity, researching….I could go on and on! These are the
skills employers are looking for and with this experience I was more confident
in working as a team. At first I was disappointed that we
couldn’t make our own team and that we were
meant to attend 9am-5pm daily with only a lunch break in between. But at the
end of the week- I made new friends, learnt how to work with them and realised
that the 9am-5pm would be standard for any job.
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