In this final post, we learn from Kevin, Andy, Idlin, Bijan, and Majeed, the STEP Lab master’s team on Heat to Power theme, with their degrees specialising in automotive, mechanical, and aeronautical engineering.
Kevin’s Experience
I am Kevin, I got involved with the STEP Lab in 2023, and have now finished my Automotive Engineering MEng and will be working towards my Chartership status. In my Major Group Project, I was responsible for conducting thermocycle experiments on hydrocarbons to determine their operating limitations for use in a Heat 2 Power (H2P) systems. This was a main part of pre-commission the overall H2P system and analyse fluid properties to establish their suitability specifically for that application. Our team was comprised of five members. Being a multidisciplinary team, everyone brought their individual skills and knowledge, with some members previously been involved with the STEP Lab, and was able impart their knowledge to new members to get them up to speed.
STEP Lab is a bespoke environment where we learnt industry relevant skills and practical experimental knowledge that wouldn’t be conventionally taught in our other modules. Collectively as a group we learnt to calibrate sensors, characterise subsystems, post-process complex testbed data and conduct experiments at industry standards which developed our technical and analytical skills to tackle a real H2P generation problem. The multidisciplinary aspect to this lab environment meant that we were always learning things from each other and through weekly meetings effectively formulate and approve the next course of action in our delegated strands of work. Our team chemistry built quickly making the STEP Lab a sociable and collaborative environment which made communicating easy and frequent resulting in an inclusive team that had utmost respect for one another.
The STEP Lab has been unique and has instilled fundamental skills that are essential to our future careers as engineers. We think that the STEP Lab provides a great student community that encourages teamwork within all STEP Lab members, and we have come away feeling confident in communicating and utilising the lab techniques we have acquired. Our approach to engineering problems has been altered and a solution focused mindset has been imposed on us which has enabled us to establish ourselves as critical thinkers and resilient self-advocates who have real experience in a research and development lab for power generation. Since STEP Lab is a student run initiative, success is greatly dependent on your own ability to work on and progress projects leading you to feel the weight of your accomplishments upon completion.
Final Comments from Bijan’s Experience
I am Bijan, a master’s student in Mechanical Engineering, the team leader for our project, and aspiring to be working in industry related to the energy sector. STEP Lab was the most educational aspect of my university experience. It simulated industry experience very well. This is speaking from experience, as I have completed a year in industry which presented many parallels. I would highly recommend any student to try being involved with the Lab especially if you’re considering a career in the energy sector.
Working with a multi-disciplined team, communicating with people of varied expertise, organising and project management, problem solving using a systematic approach, data processing is just some of the relevant skills and competences that you can gain at the Lab. The benefit of multidisciplinary is the expanse of knowledge, you have the opportunity to be a part of other strains of the project and learn a different aspect of the greater scope. Team bonding is also important, you will be working in stressful situations from time to time. It’s good to know that you can trust your teammates.
Experience at the STEP Lab will give you an idea of how problems are discussed, and solutions are devised. You can learn a lot by sitting in a room and listening to discussion even having the opportunity to ask questions that you otherwise might not get to in industry. Remember you are here to learn so you can try things and engage in activities.
As a result, you will find that you have a lot of in-depth activities you can talk about in an interview setting. You will talk about things that professionals that have been in industry for a lifetime won’t even know about as you will be linked to real world research and development projects. It will set you apart from other graduates.
The weekly wider STEP Lab meetings are also great, as they allow for discussion, it’s an opportunity to learn and take part in other strands of work and maintain a greater understanding of the project scopes. STEP Lab undertakes ambitious projects with many moving parts, it’s easy to get lost down a rabbit hole, but weekly meetings will keep you grounded.
There is a lot of support from supervisor, Angad, and the PhD student, Ian. They have a depth and breadth of knowledge between them and are more than happy to engage with students. But remember, success is dependent on the students, STEP Lab is a student run initiative, and YOU will be doing the work and progressing projects and YOU will feel the accomplishments and the lessons learned.
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