Mariana Garza Leal - VDL ETG T&D

“VDL is a welcoming company. I feel really comfortable here. People are always willing to help you and they are open for your ideas.” Mariana Garza (29) is a mechanical engineer at VDL ETG T&D. She grew up in Mexico and together with her Italian husband she decided to move to the Netherlands and work here. “For me it is a big plus that everyone speaks English very well, so it is easy to communicate and make new friends.”

Can you describe your job?
“When I first came here I was amazed by the variety of businesses VDL is in. The job description for mechanical engineer matched perfectly: I don’t like to be put into a box, I like to do different things.  As a mechanical engineer I’m working on the new waferhandler which is in the prototype phase. This phase is important because of different issues that arise and need to be fixed. It is my job to solve these issues in the area of mechanical design, so we can move on to the next phase of the project. An example: the tolerances of a certain component mounted on the frame that do not meet the requirements and causes a volume conflict. Then I have to find out the root cause of this issue and propose a solution. Then have reviews with different colleagues about my proposal and go through an engineering change requests process so all changes can be well documented.”

What do you like about working at VDL?
“I feel very happy here due to the great atmosphere. Everybody is really friendly. We work in multidisciplinary teams, which means that you interact with colleagues from other departments as mechatronics, electrical, equipment engineering, manufacturing, logistics, project leads and software. It is so nice that the people in the teams have different ages and nationalities and they all get along quiet well. At VDL ETG everybody is important and treated the same. I like that. They also make you feel free to speak up from work improvement ideas to personal development topics and you know you will be heard.”

At VDL ETG we design high-tech equipment. For me it is a new learning curve, which enables me to apply my technical knowledge and learn more about the process and how things are done. You get really interesting complex challenges and have many opportunities to grow in different directions. My ambition is to improve my work experience and grow in my technical knowledge. We have a lot of networking activities, such as a general meeting every month to let us know where we are with the company. The vibe here is relaxed thanks to the disposition of my colleagues to make jokes and sometimes having drinks after work to celebrate the success of the team.”

How is it to live in the Netherlands?
“For me the Netherlands is an open country for expats. Companies are willing to hire expats. We live in Eindhoven, which is not a very big city but there is a lot to do here. Everybody speaks English, so you can communicate very well. Before I lived in Slovakia and the language was a big problem. I have made some new friends here at work and we often meet up for drinks after work.”