Employers Case Studies
B/E Aerospace
Philip Rea is an industrial engineer with B/E Aerospace, the world's leading manufacturer of cabin interior products for commercial aircraft and business jets. In the summer of 2006 he hosted an IAESTE trainee from Switzerland, Sebastian Beck. We interviewed Philip and Sebastian on their experience of the IAESTE programme
Philip, how did you first come across IAESTE?
I actually went on two IAESTE placements while I was studying engineering at Queen’s. The first was with ABB in Finland, and then with the University of British Colombia in Vancouver. That meant I got two very different experiences: one on the shop floor and one in a research environment.
What do you think your IAESTE placements brought you?
They were a great help when I was looking for my first job. The employer wanted to send their graduate recruits to the USA for two years, so it was a big advantage to have lived and worked abroad. It also meant I was confident of my own ability to cope with a couple of years away. An IAESTE placement gives you all sorts of other skills too: flexibility, the ability to adapt if you arrive somewhere and something doesn’t go perfectly; you learn to deal with it and get on with it.
Why did you want to take on an IAESTE student for the summer?
To return the favour. I know IAESTE are always looking for employers in the UK, and I always said if I was in a position to employ a trainee I would. And it’s worked out really well. Sebastian was up to speed very quickly and has been really useful for us. To give you an example, we got a delivery of sheets that came in the wrong size with a tight deadline to meet, so we needed to get them cut and into the ovens and all the paperwork sorted out – Sebastian was able to take a five minute explanation of what we needed to do and coordinate all of that. Basically I just stepped back and Sebastian dealt with it all.
What do you think is the main advantage of taking on an IAESTE trainee?
We have customers here from all over the world on a more or less daily basis. We always try to learn a little about their customs and language to make them feel at home, so it helps a lot if we have personnel from different countries. So if Swiss Air come in and we have Sebastian here from Switzerland, I think that’s a real benefit.
Sebastian, what kind of work have you been doing?
Well, first Philip arranged for me to spend a couple of weeks going all over the factory to get an idea of how each department works. That was helpful because I saw the whole place before starting into my own job. Since then I’ve been working on lots of different things, partly in the factory and partly in the office, doing computer work, calculating capacity for next year, that kind of thing.
Has it been useful for you?
Yes, because university in Switzerland is very theoretical, so you learn a lot of stuff but you never actually use it. When I came here for the first time I saw how the theory could be applied, which is much more fun that just reading or hearing about it.
And how have you found Northern Ireland?
It was a pleasant surprise. I didn’t know much about it before I came here, but I’ve had a great summer here. I’ve met a lot of local people and got to know them well. There are IAESTE trainees here from all over the world so we are experiencing Northern Ireland for the first time together.
