Chemical Manufacturing Co-op Experience

Name: Shrey Mahajan

Type of Project: Internship

Please provide a brief description of your STEP Signature Project.

I worked at ExxonMobil’s Baytown Olefins Plant during the Fall semester of 2018 as an Olefins Technical Co-op – specifically in a Process Engineering role. The Olefins Plant converts ethane to ethylene and is the largest such facility in the world. It is part of the integrated Baytown Complex, which includes a Refinery and Chemical Plant. Leveraging my Chemical Engineering education, I worked to progress long term capital projects, run plant tests on equipment, and optimize overall ethylene production.

What about your understanding of yourself, your assumptions, or your view of the world changed/transformed while completing your STEP Signature Project?

At the start of college, I was a student set on a career in medicine and began in the major Biomedical Science. However, after reflecting on my future, I decided to switch to Chemical Engineering so I would be assured a backup career option. From the beginning, I was worried that medicine might not be my preferred choice. Indeed, while progressing through my courses, I gained an appreciation for all that I learned – both in my pre-medical curriculum and in engineering. I found that I was increasingly unsure of which career to choose.

To further understand my interests, I began applying for internships and chose an offer from ExxonMobil. After starting my co-op, within the first few weeks, I quickly found value in the work completed. I was assigned several projects, each of which involved learning about the nuances of a manufacturing facility. I spent many hours studying P&IDs, PFDs, and our operating manuals. I also learned the technical calculations underpinning equipment operation, such as that for piping, pumps, and reactors.

I found that I not only enjoyed my work, but truly loved the challenge presented every single day. I had to continuously learn and improve in my daily interactions. From this, I grew far more confident in my technical and interpersonal skills – factors that I know I will use throughout my life.

What events, interactions, relationships, or activities during your STEP Signature Project affected you?

During the four months I spent in Baytown, Texas, I found that my professional and career priorities had drastically changed. This can be attributed to several key criteria – the work completed, the plant environment, the company culture, and the people.

To begin, the work I completed challenged me in ways I hadn’t anticipated. During my first week, I was given a list of projects and key deliverables I would be responsible for. Looking at this was entirely overwhelming as this was my first industry experience. I hadn’t learned nearly enough in my classes to feel as though I was prepared – in fact, I felt completely out of place. However, over the weeks, I leveraged the knowledge of our Contact Engineers, equipment files, and especially Google to gain an understanding of the process I was now a part of. Most importantly, I learned the importance of the work assigned to me – I had been given projects that needed to be completed for financial, environmental, and safety reasons. By the end of my term, I was able to drive true progress on every task assigned.

The next key factor was the plant environment. One of my projects involved the construction of new facilities in the plant. To work on this, I sat at my desk and determined our process operating conditions and our needed specifications. I compiled needed forms and documentation to progress the project. However, to complete the engineering design work, I had the opportunity to conduct field work. I loved putting on my PPE – my hard hat, fire-resistant clothing, gloves, and hearing protection – and entering the actual plant. I learned the importance of safety in each task completed and went out dozens of times to trace piping, conduct pressure surveys, or to just learn more about the overall process.

Lastly, I enjoyed the company culture – especially the people I had the opportunity to work with. Many of my coworkers had entered their current role recently and were also learning the process alongside myself. In the work I was assigned, I became the expert – I learned to present this technical information in one-on-one settings, in meetings, and in presentations. Through this, I learned to be confident in the recommendations I made. Alongside the work, I also had the opportunity to volunteer with my fellow co-ops and attend several social events in nearby Houston. All these factors made me decide to work towards joining a chemical manufacturer as my starting career.

Why is this change/transformation significant or valuable for your life?

Going forward, I am entirely confident in my future career path. Whereas in the past I had toyed with a medical career or research path, I am now set on starting my career working as a Chemical Engineer. To this end, I will be returning to ExxonMobil as a Cost Engineering Intern this summer. While this is a completely different role, I anticipate that I will learn as much from it as I did this Fall. From all that I’ve done, I’ve learned to leverage my academic inclinations towards industry. I’ve gained confidence in my abilities and have learned key software, calculations, and concepts that I can utilize in the future. Going forward, I am working on deciding where to start my full-time career after graduation.

 

Co-ops at the Baytown Olefins Plant during Fall 2018