Time flies when having fun, and as a young graduate at GKN this is definitely more true than we want it to be! More than ten months have already passed since we stepped through the main gate for the very first time, as newly hatched and very much unexperienced engineers. As time has gone by, we have step by step grown into our professional roles and soon a new adventure is awaiting where we get the chance to spread our wings. In October/November, we will begin six exciting months of international practice!

For that reason I visited Fokker Aerostructures in Papendrecht, the Netherlands, last week where I will spend the forthcoming winter and spring. Papendrecht, which is also the headquarters of our Dutch subsidiary, manufactures fuselage panels to the Gulfstream 650, which is one of the world’s most popular business jets. At present, a majority of the component manufacturing for these panels are performed by Turkish Aerospace Industries, but my task will be to lead a project aimed at gradually insourcing the complete production to the Netherlands. A large project with major accountability, but also a very educational one that I definitely look forward to. It feels like a perfect challenge that will pave the way for my future intended role as a New Product Introduction (NPI) leader. It will be very exciting and developing to work with new tasks, new products and in a new country.

I really can´t wait to get there!