Summer Placement: Geotechnical Engineering in The Department of Civil and Structural Engineering, University of Sheffield

Sebastià Despuig Reid, SELA Cohort 2015

In 2008 the Government signed the Climate Change Act which has the duty to cut 80% of greenhouse emissions by 2050. Therefore, the government needs to shift to alternative and cleaner sources to produce electric energy like wind. Three quarters of the planet is covered in water; therefore, it is no surprise that we look further away from our coast shore to take advantage of powerful nature sources. Nevertheless, there are some limitations due to costs and current installation methods which are mostly related to the foundations of the wind turbine, therefore there is need to find solutions to manufacture and install larger and cheaper wind turbines to meet the Climate Change Act target.

Throughout the summer I undertook a research placement in the Civil and Structural Engineering department within the Geotechnical Engineering branch. My project was based on the study of offshore wind turbine rough foundations. I was able to propose my title, always taking into account the interests and suggestions of my supervisor. The project lasted 10 weeks overall and it was supervised by Paul Shepley, a lecturer in Geotechnical Engineering at the University.

The main objective was to analyse the behaviour of different rough foundations compared to the same smooth foundations that are currently in use. The tests were performed on scaled samples at the geotechnical engineering lab by applying a horizontal load at the head of the pile. Unfortunately, I didn’t have time to test all foundations and throughout the project I decided to narrow down my topic to tackle any gaps in the design codes based on the roughness of foundations. As I started accumulating a larger work load I decided to push my research project into my final year dissertation, where I will be able to tackle issue in greater depth.

This summer research placement gave me the opportunity to experience all the sides of being involved in research, which helped me decide if I want to continue my studies with a PhD after I graduate. Firstly, I had to develop a research proposal and a time plan to work out what I was going to do each week. I conducted a thorough search on what other researchers had found out about topic and wrote a literature review. I also had to find out what instrumentation I needed to perform the tests and learn how to use it. Finally, I wrote about the findings on the tests performed and how these fit with what is already in place.

This project was an incredible opportunity to learn about the subject, experience from first-hand the life of a researcher and work together with other academics which have a broad understanding of Geotechnical Engineering.

Summer Placement: Integrated Manufacturing Group at the Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre

Ben Quickfall, SELA Cohort 2015

Between my second and third year of university study I was delighted to be offered a 12 week summer internship at the Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre’s (AMRC) Integrated Manufacturing Group (IMG).

The AMRC are one of seven High Value Manufacturing, Catapult companies. The aim of these companies is to bridge between academic research and industry, completing research which tackles current problems and is industrially commercial. This is with the aim of maintaining Great Britain’s position as one of the world’s leading countries in state of the art technology and innovation as well as driving the country’s economic growth in this sector.

The IMG is one of the many divisions of the AMRC and has recently relocated to the newly built Factory 2050, which is the first reconfigurable type factory of its kind. The IMG focus on cutting edge manufacturing and assembly technologies, advanced robotics, flexible automation, next generation man-machine interfaces and new programming and training tools.

During the 12 weeks of my placement I completed a project with a colleague to create a Reconfigurable Factory Demonstration. This demonstration was designed to show a scaled down version of the capability and potential that an operational reconfigurable factory could have. This is the same concept on which Factory 2050 was built (and more generally Industry 4.0 has). The demonstration comprised of a focused Internet of Things (IoT) network, created solely for the equipment within the demonstration. The equipment included: ABB and KUKA robotic arms, a KUKA youBot which is an omnidirectional AGV, a Raspberry Pi 3 as the central broker for the IoT network as well as Arduino Leonardos connected to each of the larger pieces of equipment. The Arduinos connected to the robotic arms and the KUKA youBot itself communicated with the Raspberry Pi Broker via a MQTT messaging protocol.

Whilst I completed work with all aspects of the project, ranging from creating the electronic boards used to connect the Arduinos to the Robotic Arms, to programming the Arduino’s to communicate over the MQTT network in C++, my work largely focused on the automation of the KUKA youBot. It was my responsibility to program the KUKA youBot within ROS (Robot Operating System). ROS is an open source framework which is being increasingly used within multi device projects and more specifically projects involving robotics – as the name would suggest. The framework operates using a nodal network where messages are published to topics and received by nodes subscribing to the same topics, with the idea that each node could be programmed for each of the devices in the ROS network.

As well as being exposed to a vast amount of equipment and learning a lot of new technical knowledge, many of the skills I have been developing through SELA have been heightened further as a result of the internship. Working closely with just one colleague on the project improved my project management and one-to-one communication skills and highlighted the importance of producing clear and concise documentation/programming comments to enable a team to work efficiently.

Being fortunate enough to have had this experience at AMRC, with the avuncular nature of the staff and the company itself, implores me to recommend completing summer internships to any student. My time at AMRC was extremely beneficial to my technical and personal development along with also being thoroughly enjoyable throughout!

Summer Placement: Gripple

Sam Barnes, SELA Cohort 2015

As a mechanical engineering student, I looked for a placement that offered both the opportunity to put into practice the skills and knowledge that I had gained so far in my degree, and also to gain a broader understanding of engineering in a business environment. Following a very successful visit to their premises with SELA, I applied for a summer placement at Gripple Ltd, a Sheffield based engineering company specialising in wire tensioning devices and overhead suspension systems. Having applied through the People and Culture department I was invited for an interview with Neil Clarke and Charlotte Hill, both of whom were product managers in the marketing department, and was lucky enough to be offered a placement.

I had a range of responsibilities for the 10 weeks I was with Gripple, some within the remit of the marketing department and some out of it, but the main deliverable for my time there was a certification audit. Gripple manufactures well over 200 different products and kits, and each of these require approval and testing certification for different markets and customers - my task was to produce a definitive record of everything currently held by Gripple and then to identify any gaps in the certification that needed to be filled. The resulting directory enabled Gripple staff to quickly answer customer requests for certification and also ensured that further testing was not carried out where certification already existed, something that had been an issue at Gripple.

Outside of the marketing department I was also involved in product development work. The assigned project was to design and develop a product to secure commonly used cable basket for overhead electrical cables to an existing Gripple bracket range. This has two advantages, firstly it saves on hardware, reducing time and money for end users, but more importantly it is far safer in the case of a fire as traditional fixing methods are prone to failing in high temperatures, allowing the cables to fall. Commercially, this takes an established Gripple product and opens up another market and application that is not currently serviced, thereby adding incremental sales. The development involved a lot of work with 3D printers as these allowed me to test each iteration of the prototypes in a matter of hours, rather than days. This aspect of the placement was particularly valuable to me as it brought to reality all the principles and processes I’ve been taught in the first 2 years of my degree and directly influenced the direction of the product, although the project is still ongoing. The project also acted as a catalyst for me to learn from the experience of the other engineers around me. Whenever I encountered an issue or needed a second opinion the people around me were more than happy to help, which helped me to learn as well as helping with the progression of the project.

Looking back at my time with Gripple I see it as a great success - I was able to achieve everything I wanted from the placement, gaining experience and broadening my horizons. Having also discussed some ongoing work with the product managers, alongside my university work, I look forward to what the future holds for the company and me.

Summer Placement: Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Sheffield

Samuel Grant, SELA Cohort 2015

Over the summer of 2016 I had the opportunity to take part in the SELA Summer Placement Scheme. Through the programme I worked with Dr Mark Ogden in the Chemical and Biological Engineering (CBE) department.

My placement started off like any new research project, by creating a white paper of previous research in this area. This took about two weeks to finish, under the guidance of Dr Ogden, by which time I had gained some insight into the process that was being used and any limitations that existed.

I then began designing the rig, using CAD in order to create a dimensionally accurate design which could be used for ordering of parts and materials. In addition to this, I began sourcing additional resources that I would need to get the rig to an operational state. With the help of Keith Penny, Dr Ogden’s technician, I found a working Peristaltic Pump and the necessary tubing that would move the chemicals through the extractor. I must give my thanks to Keith, who without this project wouldn’t have moved as smoothly. One of the most important lessons I have learnt during this project is that the vital role technicians play in research is understated and that they deserve respect for the hard work they do, both in helping academics with research and the running of labs for undergraduate study.

With the design complete and materials bought, Keith and I began building the rig. The structure of the rig was going to be made of box section steel and would support rectangular sections of 13-ply plywood, which had been treated to be resistant to chemical spills.

Using an angle grinder, I cut the box steel to the necessary lengths that had been designated in the CAD design. After this had been done, I used a MIG (Metal Inert Gas) welder to join the sections together. This was an interesting experience, as I had never used a MIG welder before and the learning curve was harsh with the inclusion of a small piece of melted metal falling into my ear - an accident that even the most stringent health and safety supervisor couldn’t have foreseen.  However after two days of work with no more accidents, the rig was built. The extractor was placed within it and connected up to the Peristaltic pump. Testing was then carried out to check the rig had no leaks, and any leaks that were found were patched up using Teflon. In addition to this any electrical equipment that was used needed to be PAT tested, teaching me that it is important to schedule work orders in advance to avoid delays.

This summer was an insight into the life of an academic researcher, which is a varied and often challenging role within the university system. Hours of work can often vary from anywhere between a few meetings a day, through to twelve hours of designing and drawing using CAD. The challenges of working within a relatively small budget was also interesting, resulting in a hunt throughout the department for equipment no longer in use that could be requisitioned for use within my research , echoing the adage that one man’s rubbish is another man’s treasure. To any person going into research, I would recommend asking around your department before buying any expensive equipment, it may save you a significant amount of money.

I would recommend doing a research placement to any member of the engineering faculty as it is a rewarding experience that will definitely improve your career prospects.