Andries Els

As an Engineer in Training, I work closely with the production engineer and superintendents to support efficient operations and drive continuous improvement. My role is designed to provide hands-on experience and technical growth through active involvement in daily operational tasks, reporting, and problem-solving. I am also required to identify and drive a project that will lead to process improvement as well as personal growth. I also work with the technical manager, who provides guidance and insights along my development journey.

Key Responsibilities:

• Daily Operational Support: I assist the production engineer and superintendents in routine tasks to help maintain smooth production processes. I also assist with audits and collaboration between departments to ensure good overall plant performance.
• Data-Driven Reporting: I conduct and prepare daily reports to track production metrics and support data-informed decision-making. I also compile the KPI daily to keep track of key performance indicators to ensure they are met as far as possible.
• Root Cause Failure Analysis (RCFA): I participate in failure analysis processes to identify and address the underlying causes of equipment or process issues. This includes electrode break investigations and under/over carbon investigations.
• Standby Duties: I am on standby to provide production support and respond to urgent technical needs as they arise.
• Process Improvement Initiatives: I contribute to process optimization projects, working to implement solutions that enhance productivity and efficiency.
• Skill Development and Department Exposure: I engage in a variety of tasks to gain a broad experience within the production engineering field and to grow as an engineer.
• Chromex Preparations: I assist with Chromex preparations, ensuring all the relevant data is analyzed and summarized in the Chromex report.
• Daily Discussions: I take part in the daily discussions regarding the operational status of the plant, operational decisions as well as the implementation of these decisions.
  
  

During my vacation work I gained knowledge about the physical plant, the various processes and the systems utilized in the production process. The vacation work entailed 6 weeks plant exposure at the end of each academic year.

• The first term was from December 2019 - February 2020 where I worked at the furnaces on a project pertaining to the C losses through the off gas
• The second term was from December 2020-February 2021 where i worked at the premus department on improving anthracite quality.
• The third term was from December 2021-February 2022 again at premus where I worked on a project to improve pellet quality.
• The last term was from December 2022-February 2023 where I was placed at premus to work on a project to correlate pellet size and pellet reduction.