Even though many of our graduates will have progressed in their careers since completing a case study, they are still of interest to students who wish to gain an understanding of the world of work.

I direct a team of around 100 engineers to develop 2-3 new innovative products per year. The department role includes ongoing continuous improvement of existing units, development of technology, algorithms and internal software systems.

Very varied:-
Mechanical, electronic and software engineering design input on new projects.
Allocation of work on new projects and continuous improvement of existing ones.
Project planning.
People management and interviewing.
Direction of problem solving of time, design and production problems relating to the development department.
Liaising with customers when issues represent an issue with the product design or specification.
Involvement in working with new and existing customers to tailor new product offerings to market requirements and winning business.

Fast paced and varied, developing a new product can be very creative and rewarding even when industrial in nature.

Time pressures, managing project risks.
Managing people is always difficult, especially regarding salaries, attendance etc.

I reached my position due to a passion for mechanical design. This type of product design is rare in the north of England.

My degree was useful for providing a base understanding of design for manufacture, report writing and managing deadlines. It's very difficult to attribute the skills I use daily to an exact source but the degree was certainly a large part of it. I see this more clearly in the graduates we take on straight from university in comparison to staff without higher education.

I've had no formal training whatsoever. Most of the time it would just be a certificate anyway!

2006 Manufacturing engineer at Callender Aeropart. - programming large CBC machines to make complex CNC machined turbine and compressor blades. Design of jigs and fixtures, and methods of manufacture. Training CAD and CAM

Current employer, design engineer 2007. Designed a coin hopper, the "smart hopper" which is now commercially available.

2009 Senior mechanical engineer, dept of 8 people.

2010 Development Manager (Team of 20-40 engineers)

2016 - Now R&D Director (Team of 100 Engineers, scientists, administrators, testers technicians, apprentices)

I have no plans to take further formal qualifications, but hope to stay with the company as it rapidly grows.

I had a job arranged for when I finished university, due to summer work. Many engineering companies are desparate to recruit and offer placements in order to encourage graduate engineers to join them. This is true of both companies I have worked for.