I'm getting on the bus - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: djsb
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 23, 2010, 08:42:07 am
content: Just like to mention that I'm starting my new job at Brunel University on Monday. I'll be employed as a technician in the school of Engineering and Design. Can't believe how lucky I am to be back in work after 15 months of unemployment.The post title is in reference to recent comments by Tory MP Iain Duncan Smith about unemployed people being prepared to travel to find workhttp://www.heraldscotland.com/news/politics/pm-backs-call-to-job-hunters-to-get-on-the-bus-1.1063300?localLinksEnabled=falseMy appologies for mentioning politics in this post, I just thought it was relevant.

author: dds
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: October 23, 2010, 11:44:58 am
content: Congrats!

author: DJPhil
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: October 23, 2010, 11:48:04 am
content: Congratulations! Sounds like the sort of job with a fair chance at being enjoyable.There's no accounting for the minds and mouths of politicians.

author: Zero999
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 23, 2010, 12:06:21 pm
content: I start a new (hopefully) permanent job on Monday. I've worked only two and a half weeks in the last 15 months and it pays more than my previous proper job.Good luck.I think the MP made a silly comment, of course most people looking for work are willing to travel and they should be able to get some expenses for it if they can't afford public transport.

author: saturation
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 23, 2010, 12:09:43 pm
content: Enjoy! Let us know what kind of electronics they have you do.

author: Mechatrommer
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 23, 2010, 12:33:49 pm
content: Congrats. Dont forget EEVbloggers to whom who got the permanent job

author: Zero999
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 23, 2010, 06:44:01 pm
content: Quote from: saturation on October 23, 2010, 12:09:43 pmI'd be very surprised if i do any. It's a job as an electrical engineer at a company which makes filling equipment to work on a production line. For example, suppose a factory needs a new machine to fill jars on the production line with exactly the right amount of coffee; the company designs and makes the machine that does it. I'll be trained up on PLCs, at the moment I don't have much experience in this area apart from a crappy college course but I'm willing to learn.I wouldn't mind doing an electronics related job, but there's not much of that going around. I did also have an interview for an electronics test engineer at another company but an internal applicant got it. This doesn't bother me because I'd rather do design rather than testing which would probably bore me after awhile.

author: JohnS_AZ
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: October 23, 2010, 06:50:16 pm
content: Gongrats, and cool ... ladder logic and state machinesI actually enjoyed that stuff back when.

author: McPete
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: October 24, 2010, 12:42:33 am
content: Congrats on the jobs guys!A job at a Uni as a technician often ends up as you becoming "Mr Fix-It", and you'll get to see all sorts of crazy things- I helped build a baby desalination plant when I was seconded to Sydney Uni. That was pretty cool.Automation jobs are pretty interesting as well- That's my actual trade field, and the limited experience I have in doing that work has been pretty interesting... You'll probably run across PID (proportional, integral, derivative) controllers and associated current loops, transmitters of all sorts. It can get pretty involved!I'm doing a PLCs course at the moment- Currently fiddling with a program that's almost entirely made of subroutines... Our teacher instructed us to write a washing machine program, just for something practical. We're writing it in a version of KV-Ladder which runs in DOS -_- Our college is right up to date.

author: Simon
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: October 26, 2010, 11:01:34 am
content: Quote from: Hero999 on October 23, 2010, 12:06:21 pmdepends on who you ask. I got looks of surprise at the job centre when I said I was willing to go from Wellingborough to Kettering (15 miles) to work and told to take it easy, even the idiots at desks helping people find work have no damn idea about reality and aren't that helpful.if it's not far to travel and they are after anyone else let me know about it

author: Zero999
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 26, 2010, 07:39:58 pm
content: I went for jobs further away than that before.My current job is 14.7 miles.So far it seems like a good company. The people seem friendly and it seems pretty relaxed. I've not been given anything specific to do yet other than familiarise myself with the AutoCAD electrical, which I've never used before. I've been trying to follow the tutorials which is really hard work and boring. I find the best way to learn is to do it on the job. If the boss doesn't set me a task tomorrow, I'll set myself one, yes I know I should've done that by now.

author: EEVblog
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: October 26, 2010, 11:49:12 pm
content: Congrats!My company is 32km each way, practically half way across Sydney.Much further than I ever wanted to travel to work, but at the time that wasn't a consideration. Still here 3 years later...Dave.

author: Zad
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 27, 2010, 12:11:45 am
content: Welcome back DaveA better way to measure it might be time. I have worked an hour or so away from home, and that REALLY drags. Adding 25% on to each day at work, and a big fuel bill at the end of the week isn't really fun. It wasn't really that far away, just a pain to get to down a lot of slow urban roads. Urgh.

author: EEVblog
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: October 27, 2010, 01:21:58 am
content: Quote from: Zad on October 27, 2010, 12:11:45 amYeah. I can do the trip in under 25min each way outside of peak hour, but it might be 40min each way on a bad day.I'd actually prefer to spend an hour each way riding my bike or walking to work than 30min driving the car.I pay more than $2500 each year just in road tolls to and from work.Dave.

author: Simon
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: October 27, 2010, 07:39:16 am
content: well I'm currently 6.5 miles from work, so if I took another job I'd be factoring in extra fuel cost when considering wages as my monthly budget is already set (something to do with a mortgage and a car to run, and car=having a job)

author: McPete
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: October 27, 2010, 09:58:51 am
content: Ah, yes, the old commute discussion- I'm nice and close, 10km by car or 15 on the bike (I'm not brave/silly enough to ride on the shoulder of a 100km/h freeway), which turns out to be about 15 and 30 minutes respectively from home.My trip to my TAFE college however... Yeah, two hours on trains each way, from Wollongong to Petersham. Next year won't be so bad- I've been talking with the head teacher at Ultimo (Sydney CBD) TAFE electrical engineering, and their electronics engineering Advanced Diploma sounds fantastic. It's only 1 1/2 hours on the train to boot!If I were going to go for a design job in the future, I'd be on for that 1 1/2 hour trip every day, unless I moved house. Plenty of people do that 150km+ round trip every day. Some people DRIVE that every day around here!

author: djsb
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 27, 2010, 07:47:36 pm
content: It's a 15 mile trip to my new job. A 5 mile cycle ride down the tow path of the grand union canal (where you can see the swans sleeping) and then a bus ride to the Uni.The journey home is the killer as I have to cycle down the canal path in the dark dodging other bikes,pedestrians and muddy puddles. Being tired doesn't help. It's an hour and a half there and 2 hours home. I have to do this until January as then I can ride my motorcycle which will make it easier.So far I'm happy with the job and I'm impressed with the facilities. They do everything, motorsport, aeronautical, mechanical and civil engineering and more that I've not seen yet. They are also expanding into new areas as well. I'm working in the school of engineering and design.More later if anyones interested.

author: Mechatrommer
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 28, 2010, 12:47:15 am
content: Quote from: djsb on October 27, 2010, 07:47:36 pmreminds me of my young age during working and how unstable and tiring it is. keep it going, a better day will be waiting.

author: Zero999
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 28, 2010, 05:59:35 pm
content: The best way is to work out how much you get paid per hour, not you hourly rate but the total time you spend at work (including and unpaid breaks) and commuting minus fuel, ticket costs and vehicle maintenance. It's not easy to calculate, fortunately for me my new job pays slightly more than my last job, even when commuting time fuel and unpaid break are factored in, although it's difficult to do this caculation accurately due to inflation so worst case I at least get the same. I also get paid overtime, at my previous job one had to do it for the love of it, although I never had to so it didn't make any difference.In real terms though, I'll probably have to work harder but I think the higher salary and overtime make up for it. There's also an annual Christmas bonus which I haven't factored in and I hope to get a pay rise at the end of my probationary period so it should be better than my calculations predict.

author: Mechatrommer
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 28, 2010, 06:55:10 pm
content: Quote from: Hero999 on October 28, 2010, 05:59:35 pmmy way is simpler... you get your salary, you eat it, and at the end of the month, you check how many is left, or in debt. if you are in debt, then you have to do some "power management" or "switching regulator". if you end up zero, you have to increase the "power", if you have more left, then you can stay "idle" or "screen saving".

author: Zero999
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 29, 2010, 04:29:14 pm
content: For that to work it needs to be a long term average as the amount you spend or earn will vary. I also like to factor in my time as well, for example, I'd value a job which is only two miles away, 35 hours a week and pays only 22k a year more than a job which is 20 miles away, 40 hours a week and pays 25k per year, assuming I can live of 22k of course.There are other things which are also harder to quantify such as stress and whether the people are decent or not. As far as the people side is concerned, it's still too early to tell but so far, so good, my manager seems fairly relaxed and everyone else seems fairly reasonable, no one I'd choose to go down the pub with but it's probably better that way otherwise they might distract me from my work.

author: djsb
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 30, 2010, 11:12:21 am
content: The university culture is quite relaxed with a 35 to 37 hour week and more holidays than usual (when the place is closed for school breaks). As long as you get the job done nobody bothers you. What I like the most is that I can work on my own projects over the summer whilst still getting paid. I might be able to get involved in the work of other engineering departments as well, like the motorsports dept that has an interesting electric motorcycle project (BX-09 featured at the IOM TT races).Out of term universities get very quiet but this provides an opportunity for self learning and like any job it's what you make of it.Just have to negotiate my way through the office politics that is part of any workplace. I try to avoid it if I can. The university is on the edge of London as well so plenty of countryside for a walkabout in my lunchhour.

author: Time
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: October 31, 2010, 03:32:07 am
content: Yes, academia is awesome. I just came from a job in academia to a corporate job and while I like the pay raise I totally miss the relaxed atmosphere and schedule.

author: Zero999
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 31, 2010, 09:21:35 am
content: Quote from: Time on October 31, 2010, 03:32:07 amI'll see how this job goes but in a few years time I might consider a job like that but of course it depends on whether I will be able to afford the pay cut.