Calvin Jnr Muyenga Intungi

Ferrum Process Systems Ltd.

Bachelor student in Mechanical Engineering Namibia University of Science and Technology

February 01 - April 30

AT work

I had the privilege of working at Ferrum Process Systems AG and I can safely say it was a dream come true. This was really a life-changing opportunity and made me feel like it was my home away from home. On my first day I was welcomed with a message in the screen saying, “you will do great Calvin” and it set the tone that this was going to be and amazing journey. My workmates and supervisors were welcoming and friendly making it easy to get along and build good friendships with them. Most of this was new to me at first but with the help of my mentor Christian, it got easier. He made the work clear and the entire learning process a fun and knowledgeable experience. I can safely say the skills I have acquired will emulate throughout my career.

My swiss host family

During the time in Switzerland, I lived with the Abdulkadir family, which was made up of Madeleine, Scek and another student from Afghanistan who I regarded my brother, Shaban. Madeleine and Papa Scek made me feel so welcome in their home, they always checked in to see how my day was, did I sleep well and that I always had something to do over the weekend. We lived in Aarau for the first month and then Hunzenschwil for the rest of my stay. Papa Scek went to Somalia at the beginning of March and would only return in June. Madeleine would always help me plan trips that I could do with friends and had many suggestions on things to do. She cooked many different Swiss dishes and made delicious pastries.

HIGHLIGHTS AND CHALLENGES IN SWITZERLAND

My greatest highlight was when I learned to snowboard. It was always a dream of mine to one day snowboard and it came true. I fell flat on my back too many times than I could count but eventually got the hang of it. I learned how to ice skate which was a bit tricky at the beginning as balancing on the ice was not so easy, but it eventually worked out. We visited so many places around Switzerland like the Santis mountain where we built a snowman, the Geneva Motor Show where I saw so many cars I had only seen on TV before, the FIFA museum where we saw the actual world cup, and the Lindt chocolate factory with so many varieties to try. The public transport in Switzerland is honestly amazing as it allows you to plan trips ahead as well as know what time you are expected to arrive at a specific destination.

The challenge I faced was the unpredictable weather. There were heavy rains especially during my first weeks and this was not ideal for me as I liked being outdoors, exploring and sightseeing. It could go from a sunny day to a rainy day to a windy day all in a matter of hours which made it a bit tricky to dress appropriately.

My future plans

With all the knowledge and skills that I have obtained while working at Ferrum, I plan on taking this knowledge back home and utilizing it to better my country. Once I obtain my degree, I plan on pursuing my master’s degree in the field of energy and resources as I see it is an untaped field. With the talks of green hydrogen and the discovery of crude oil of the coastline of Namibia, I see it as a potential opportunity to imbed myself into an industry in the making.

Personal message

I would like to start by thanking the B360 Educational Partnership for this once in a lifetime opportunity. I would also like to thank the Abdulkadir family for welcoming me into their home with open arms and all the people who assisted me during my stay, my mentor Christian Henke and line manager Michael Siegrist for always helping and making sure I was in a good working environment and finally a big thank you to the Ferrum AG group for giving me this opportunity to work with world class engineers.

It was a great pleasure coming to Switzerland away from my comfort zone which are my friends and family. This experience was filled with adventures, laughter and memories that one could only dream of. My advice to future interns is to not try to force any matter, if it is right for you then things will fall into place with time.