Hello Everyone

Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Saién Rugdeo ( Sai the Guy as I was frequently referred to during the past month). I have a background in mechanical engineering with experience in renewable energy for automotive vehicles. I am from South Africa, and I am fortunate enough to be a part of this amazing experience, alongside 10 other talented individuals for the Second wave of the SKF Global Trainee Programme. I am really excited to be the first of the Wave II trainees to post about our experiences.
During the month of September, all 11 of us gathered and met for the first time. We all had no idea what we were in store for exactly, but we soon realized how fortunate we were to be in this position, being exposed to the inner workings of an industry leader with such a global footprint. We met with members of Group Management as well as representatives from the various units with SKF, and we were encouraged to ask the challenging questions. We also ran into those cool kids from Wave I !

SKF Wave 2 Trainees

The best part of the introduction month was the opportunity to tackle tasks and problems with the other trainees who are not from the same background or have the same set of skills as I do. I noticed something amazing that would happen all the time, a “Mastermind Effect” . The diverse teams would come up with such creative solutions and ideas that would have never been possible if we all had the same skill set. It is something quite scalable, and I encourage everyone to approach tasks with this mindset. Collaborate!

I am currently back in my home unit of Application Engineering, in SKF South Africa. My 5 month rotation here will see me working with the engineers on different tasks, however I was assigned with 1 main task. As you may know, SKF takes its impact on the environment very seriously. SKF has 15 LEED (Leading in Energy and Environmental Design) certified buildings around the world, which proves its commitment towards Environmental Care. My main task during my 5 month rotation is to propose ways improve the energy efficiency and waste management of our current premises in Johannesburg, South Africa. I look forward to this challenge as well as the journey ahead of me over the next 18 months.

Please feel free to ask me any questions or give feedback and thoughts.
Until Next Time
-Sai