Albert Eriksson, trainee 2007

Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering
Specialized in Solid Mechanics
Linköping Institute of Technology, Sweden

Even though I recently commenced the Young Graduate Program, I have been on Volvo Aero for almost a decade. I was born and raised in Hjärtum, a small village outside of Trollhättan and in 1998 I had my first contact with the company through the Volvo Aero Industrial High School. Three years later, I began working as a Jet Engine Mechanic, really enjoying the company and the exciting aeronautical industry.

Eventually, I moved to Linköping to study at the university and then I went to Adelaide, Australia, for exchange studies. After a year of learning and travelling down under, I finally moved back to Trollhättan to write my Master Thesis about Fatigue Life Optimisation. It felt like an obvious next step to apply for the Young Graduate program at the end of my thesis studies; in my point of view it had everything I wanted and this far, it has really fulfilled my expectations.

A couple of weeks before graduating, I received the gratifying message that I was one out of seven people to begin the Young Graduate Program. It was still a couple of months until its start, so meantime I worked at the dept. of Solid Mechanics. It was basically an extension of my master thesis and I was sent on a three week trip to GE’s facilities in the U.S. within a development project. This is one thing I really like about Volvo Aero; there are many opportunities to work internationally with the latest technology.

At the start of the program, I spent one week in the workshop, then I went to Volvo Aero’s factory in Kongsberg, Norway, for a week to learn more about robot welding. The following eight week period, I was on the dept. of Manufacturing Technology, Fabrication & Simulation and had a closer look at the reasons behind the creation of burrs and how to prevent them from occurring. My second period was at Marketing and Programs where I, together with a graduate program colleague, participated in the process of submitting a tender for a large component.

Currently, I am at my third department, where I will look at a specific component and compare it to a similar one from another company of the Volvo Group. It is a really interesting task containing what I like most; interacting with other people and new technology.

What really appeals to me with this program is the freedom of choice; that we get to choose which companies to visit, which courses to attend, which departments to practise at and when to do it. Finally, we more or less get to choose which country to work abroad in during our last four month period. It of course entails a responsibility to learn as well as perform during the program, but yet it has only been a pleasure.

© copyright AB Volvo 2007