A Manchester student has been offered a career opportunity with Siemens after showcasing her engineering talent at a 48-hour engineering hackathon.
Alejandra Francisco, 21, was part of a team who came runners-up in the Sir William Siemens Challenge, which has been designed to identify the emerging engineering talent from across the UK and give young people a taste of what it is to work for a leading technology company.
She is studying a BEng (Hons) Aerospace Engineering at the University of Manchester.
Alejandra was one of 70 students from 27 UK universities who came together to build and programme a unique mechanical/electrical device which brought to life data from Mindsphere, Siemens’ industrial cloud-based operating system.
She was part of Team Vectron which created a miniature version of the competition space with model ‘people’ that lit up to represent increased footfall and carbon dioxide levels, an LED array which changed depending on carbon monoxide levels, and a rotating display to show the time of day.
As runners-up the team have been offered access to internship or graduate opportunities with Siemens’ Digital Industries, Smart Infrastructure, and Mobility businesses.
Alejandra said: “It was an unmissable experience. It not only enabled me to get an insight into what Siemens is like but allowed me to further develop existing skills, including problem solving and more technical skills such as soldering and dealing with machines.
“It was challenging and an experience that put me outside my comfort zone, however it was necessary to make me realise the different avenues there are in the field of STEM. It was enlightening and encouraging the participants to be very involved with one another despite not having met before and having different ways of thinking. I would recommend anyone with the chance to apply to give it a shot because you will take with you a lot of valuable knowledge and connections.”
Amelia Donaldson, Senior Talent Acquisition Specialist for Siemens, said: “Now in its fifth year the Sir William Siemens Challenge has become an extraordinary annual showcase of the engineering and digital talent emerging from UK universities.
“Having moved the competition online during the pandemic, we were delighted to return to an in-person event again.
“We are excited to be able to offer so many young people the opportunity to start their rewarding career with Siemens.”
Commenting on behalf of the judges, Colin Morris, Siemens Mobility’s Lead Development Engineering Manager, said: “The judges were blown away by the standard of the competition and the range of innovation on display throughout the weekend.
“There was a clear demonstration of adaptability, collaboration and problem-solving skills from across the teams.”
For details on all Siemens’ early careers opportunities including internships, apprenticeships and graduate schemes visit https://siemens.co.uk/earlycareers
