Gavin Zook – Engineering Internship

My name is Gavin Zook, and I am currently interning at Case New Holland. I was placed with Crop Preparation, and the team I am in is designing and testing farming technology for future years. This experience has given me a better idea of what I want to do with my future by exposing me to the various different types of engineering necessary for designing functional machines. My average day holds a variety of tasks.

On a typical day, I arrive at 7:30 and leave around 10:00, giving me time to attend pm classes and lunch at school. I usually attend on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. When I arrive, I log onto my computer and check my emails to see if there are any updates I need to know about. If not, I will often work on organizing different parts data and check in with the other engineers. There are also weekly meetings on Wednesdays. We often use Microsoft Teams, where the engineers will discuss the progress of certain parts of the machine, while also proposing ideas on which direction to go in. Occasionally, I am in other parts of the building, such as the shop downstairs. This is where I got my first impression of the prototype the team is designing, and a few weeks later I was able to operate it around the test track.

I have learned so much from these few weeks. Importantly, I now know the expectations regarding communication in a job like this. I’ve learned the importance of meetings and vital skills such as emailing and scheduling. Interning with CNH has also helped me learn more about Microsoft Excel and other engineering applications such as IView and Engineering Central. It has also helped me further my search for a future career. Should I go to college, I would likely choose mechanical engineering to study as it is a broad subject and has many applications in the real world.

This internship has been a very valuable experience for me. I’ve discovered certain types of engineering that I dislike and other aspects I think I would be more open to. While I am still deciding on the path I want to take, I am very grateful for my mentor, Jason, as well as the other employees who have helped me during this semester. I have become aware of the practices and procedures common in the real world, while furthering my insight into the topic of engineering, better preparing me to advance into college and beyond.