Our student this week is Daniel Stone, a mechanical engineering major who accepted a co-op at Duke Energy located at Crystal River, Florida. Stone describes the department he worked in and what his main responsibilities were.
“I worked in Outage and Maintenance Services,” he said. “My responsibilities: When I first arrived on site, I studied piping and instrumentation diagrams and walked down each system at the plant. I eventually began writing engineering-change work packages for various maintenance projects at the plant. I traveled to Crystal River Florida on two separate occasions during outage season to assist two boiler inspections. I also assisted four heat recovery steam generator inspections at Hines (the plant where I was located). I worked with the traveling maintenance crew when they arrived at Hines to inspect the steam turbine valve on one steam turbine. I learned the duties of the project managers whom I worked alongside.”
The most valuable benefit Stone received during his co-op assignment was actual maintainability experience in the electric utility industry.
“I learned what it takes to be a project manager, how to act in the office environment, the importance of relationships and communication,” said Stone. “The experience I have gained is sure to give me a leg up against the competition when it comes time to search for a job after graduation.”