Mate Kalan

"I would like to thank MAT and Eurac for giving me the opportunity to work here. It has been great working in the foundry and getting involved into exciting projects".

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I joined the MAT Training Program in September 2018 after completing my HNC Engineering course at Bournemouth University. During my training I have been working at Eurac in Poole.

As I have started my training, I have had to spend time in each department of production to learn and understand the foundation of the manufacturing process. I have been working in DISA, core production/fettling shop, electric melting, machine shop and the pattern shop.

Eurac Poole

As I have started my training at Eurac I have also been notified by Bournemouth University that my application has been accepted for the Foundation Degree course of Manufacturing Management Starting from October 2018. The managers at Eurac have shown great support towards my studies by allowing me to take time off from work as required by the University.

After my training in the foundry I have been working with the technical support team lead by Tim Abbiss who is the Technical Support Manager. The team has been working on a project related to improving the pouring process in the DISA department. I have been assigned to observe and analyse the pouring of the metal to provide useful data towards the root cause analysis for a defect occasionally occurring on the top of the castings.

Damage Study

As my work has been completed in DISA, I have been introduced to a new project called the damage study. The project has been led by Phil Grounds who was the Product and Process Development Manager at the time. We have inspected batches of castings at different stage of the manufacturing process looking for significant surface damage. The collected data then has provided enough information to conclude which part of the process has to be improved further in order to effectively reduce the amount of damaged castings produced during the manufacturing process.

At the end of February 2019, I have been moved down to the maintenance department to replace the Maintenance Improvement Engineer who has left the department. This new position has offered me a change in responsibility, where I could focus more on management duties, documentation and engineering projects. It was very interesting to learn from Patrick O`Hara for a couple of weeks, during this period I have learnt a lot regarding the record keeping procedures, problem solving and breakdown management duties during daily production.

Responsibility

As Patrick O`Hara has left the department I have gradually taken over all his duties throughout the months. I have received a great deal off support during this time from both Matthew Holmes, Electrical Superintendent and Jason Roff, Mechanical Superintendent under the direct supervision of Reinhard Schoeman, Maintenance Manager. They have supported me during my training within the department as well as towards my studies at the University.

By the end of July, I will have successfully completed my studies and graduated on a Foundation Degree level. As I have finished my training at Eurac I have remained within the maintenance department in Poole as a Maintenance Support Engineer. The current plan is to remain within the department and support the management with the required tasks.

I would like to thank MAT and Eurac for giving me the opportunity to work here. It has been great working in the foundry and getting involved into exciting projects. I would like to thank my managers and colleagues, especially Steve Merritt, Reinhardt Schoeman, Matthew Holmes and Jason Roff for all the support.

if you are interested in becoming an apprentice with MAT Foundry Group apply today.