The idea of doing an overseas attachment would excite anyone. As for me, it was extending my stay in Scotland for another six months. I went to the University of Strathclyde as an exchange student during the first semester. As the Scottish people are warm and friendly, I was more than delighted to extend my stay.
I was attached to the automotive division of CTS Corp (UK) Ltd. This division manufactures sensors for cars. These range from throttle position to exhaust gas remission sensors. The company sells its sensors to most of the main car manufacturers in Europe. Ford, Jaguar, BMW and Renault are some of the popular ones. I was assigned to a project and the challenge of the attachment was to find a solution to a persistent problem in the production line. Quite a considerable number of sensors are rejected due to hysteresis. When the rotor moves in the forward and reverse directions, the output voltage has to be within a certain tolerance for a given angle. This problem had been there for more than a year. The engineers were occupied with other tasks and didn’t have the time to tackle this problem. With the help of the staff, I managed to trace the cause of it by end of the attachment. The problem was due to the dimensioning of the various components involved in the process. When I left it was in the mould modifying stage.
This
Industrial Attachment has benefitted me in many ways. First, I gained
confidence in solving complex problems and the methods to tackle them.
Exposure to Western culture has indeed broadened my horizon and outlook.
Of course, I had lots of fun as well. I visited most of the places
in UK including Anfield (home of Liverpool FC, my favourite team) as well
as many parts of Europe. I was able to enjoy the France 98 experience
as well. In short, it was like a dream come true. I would like
to take this opportunity to thank Dr W.H. Siew from the University of Strathclyde,
Mr John Fagan, my supervisor, Mrs Loh Ai Hwa from OPA, and the School of
EEE for their kind help and assistance.