My first experience with Downer started with the Graduate Programme, being involved with a transport rehab project in West Auckland. I was fortunate enough to work alongside an experienced project manager, working as a site engineer. Being responsible for a worksite has allowed me to gain confidence in dealing with challenging situations and given me insight into the roading sector.
Currently undertaking my second rotation at the Turitea Wind farm based in Palmerston North, a typical day would involve coming into the office to check my emails, and to see what site activities are planned over the week. Depending on these, I begin to arrange the necessary resources to achieve on-site work. Once all the admin works are complete, I head to the site and perform any supervision/quality assurance to ensure deadlines are met. That being said, each day provides unique opportunities such as undertaking CAD drawings for components or design validation calculations.
My advice to interns is don’t be afraid to ask questions and step out of their comfort zone. Take any opportunities to travel outside of your home town. If you express interest and perform well, Downer will only support you further and allow you to grow both professionally and personally. Also, even if you don’t get a rotation in your chosen area of study, there will be ample opportunities in the future. Learning skills in other specialisations will only add to your engineering tool belt!