By engaging with local educators, we hope to build the experience and ambitions of kids who might want to start their career in the engineering world. This year we have taken on three work experience students aged between 14 and 17 from local schools and colleges.

Our work experience placements involve learning how things work, how we code and how we prototype, manufacture and design electronics products – not a drop of ‘tartan paint’ or a ‘long weight’ in sight.

In the summer, we were joined by Will Graham (Mangotsfield School), Nathan Dolan (Downend School) and Luke Staniland (St Bernard Lovell School). They all got stuck into learning about the electronic product lifecycle and learning all the important facts from Managing Director, Paul Mullen.

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Nathan and Will’s work experience diary:

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Day 1

‍We split up and worked with various members of team. Will started off the day watching Dan debug some code whilst learning all the ins and outs of what the job entails. Nathan spent the morning with Giles working through a PCB layout design and discussing what Giles does day-to-day in his role. After lunch, we swapped places.

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Day 2

‍Today we were set the task of designing a fully functional circuit involving 10 LEDs, resistors, and AA batteries. To begin with, we spent half an hour with Paul getting to grips with basic electronics. The rest of the morning was spent working out what strength resistor we needed to use with the LEDs we had chosen. We also had to work out how many batteries we would need and how long they would last. One our design was finalised, we spent the afternoon using the company’s 3D printer and looking at the sort of things it could do.

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Day 3

‍We began by building the circuit we had designed the day before, which involved a lesson in soldering and the basic principles of electronic construction. This took up a large part of our day but was worth it as it was very enjoyable. We spent the last part of our day continuing our work with the 3D printer.

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Day 4

‍Today was probably our favourite day! We were given the opportunity to make and code one of Cubik’s electronic business cards which includes an LED game. Dan taught us how to use solder paste, but we found it quite frustrating getting to grips with the fiddly nature of hand placing components on to a PCB. With help from Dan and Chase, we tweaked the programming in the business cards so that they displayed a pattern once you had completed the game.

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Day 5

‍Today we helped in production with the AOI system. We took apart two computers and installed Windows 7 to get the AOI system working.

Overall, this week has been one of the best. We have learned a lot about the industry and it has given us a good understanding of what it feels like to have a job. This week has also presented us both with a clear perspective on what we want to do when we are older – electronics!

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Luke’s Diary

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During my week at Cubik Innovation, I met everyone in the business and explored almost every aspect of what they do. It has been a great learning experience for me, and I have truly enjoyed it.

I was first interviewed last year by Paul who offered me the placement on the spot. I didn’t know what to expect but I knew that I would learn a lot and I was hoping it would be fun. What I didn’t expect, was the amount of effort the team put into making sure I was involved, and the number of tasks I would be asked to take part in.

Across the week, my tasks included learning about coding language C and helping with software development, drawing schematics, and building and testing boards to ensure they meet Cubik’s strict quality standards.

One highlight of my week has been experimenting with the 3D Printer. I was asked to design a plastic case for a circuit board that would be used for testing. Russell showed me how to use some 3D modelling software that would communicate with the printer about the final product. This was a real learning experience for me, as I have not previously used any CAD (Computer Aided Design) software before. I also managed to get a Cubik logo to print in red plastic that I was given to take home. It now stands proudly on my desk.

My work experience at Cubik has helped me decide that I would like to pursue a career in this industry and as it captures all my interests.

I would like to thank everyone at Cubik and the Bristol and Bath Science Park for being so friendly and helpful during the week. I would especially like to thank Paul for giving me the opportunity to do my placement at Cubik. It is an amazing company and the light atmosphere in both the Design and Production departments ensured it thoroughly enjoyable.

Unfortunately, this years’ work experience calendar is full, but we are always keen to hear of young engineers looking to gain some experience in electronic design and production. Please contact us directly or via our enquiries mailbox to discuss placements for 2016.