Bachelor of Applied Science (BASc) Elisa Ojala joined HUB logistics as a development engineer in September 2022. Elisa’s path to HUB was found through a thesis related to studies in industrial engineering and management.
– While pondering the topic of my thesis, I came across Hub’s search for conducting work research in an internal logistics warehouse. Researching and describing processes as well as developing activities with researched knowledge are close to my heart, so this was a good opportunity to strengthen my expertise in the subject when finishing my studies, Elisa says.
The research project turned out to be interesting. According to Elisa, it is particularly rewarding when the planned development activities can be successfully implemented as part of the operations and the value of the development work begins to materialize.
–A nice feeling about the work community and a development-oriented approach to operations sparked my interest in working at Hub, Elisa continues.
What are the duties of a development engineer?
The tasks of the development team at Hub are extensive. As a development engineer, Elisa is responsible for work study projects both internally and externally for customers. In addition, she also gets involved in solution development and takes over project management in internal development projects.
Elisa is pleased that at first it is possible to focus on one customer project and successfully complete it. Thus, in her opinion, one can get caught up in the procedures and methods of the company. In the future, project management will include routines on how things are done.
– Work study is my number one priority at first. I will try to put more tools and theory to the bottom. We are thinking about how we can further develop research methods and methods of implementation in order to make the results more realistic and of higher quality. It’s great to bring your own views to the development work and get involved in developing the operations of both HUB and our customer companies, Elisa says.
How has the work started in the first few weeks?
– During the first few weeks, I have been able to get involved in customer work quickly and I am already working very independently on a work research project. I have done data analysis related to work research, i.e. I have reviewed the initial data obtained from the customer company about material volumes, events and products.
– I have interviewed employees and done trajectory analysis and observational research. It is gratifying to see that employees are actively involved and bring their ideas to the fore. Work study relies heavily on what kind of observations employees raise about the operations. Active interviewing and data collection lead to a more comprehensive understanding of the cause-and-effect relationships of various events. In work research, as in everything else we do, openness is very important. Things need to be done together, Elisa sums up.
What is it like to work at the Hub?
Hub’s expert, open and good-natured atmosphere is praised by Elisa. The work has got off to a fast start and has met expectations. Elisa likes the opportunity to work independently quickly after starting work.
– I’ve been well received and I’ve been able to join the group nicely. In my opinion, the support of the supervisor and the work community when starting a new job is really important. I feel that I have received enough support here, which is important in order to become familiar with the operating methods and increase the certainty of my own work. I waited and assumed that I would be able to work independently and that was true.
– Now I’m looking forward to seeing what kind of projects I’ll encounter in the future. And, of course, that I get to know colleagues more extensively. I have been able to get acquainted with the logistics centre in Hakkila and the wood packaging unit in Riihimäki. Hopefully, soon I will be able to arrange an appointment to tour the rest of Hub’s units, development engineer Elisa Ojala sums up the mood of the first working weeks.
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