What do employers want?

A panel discussion with local employers

Engineering is a highly technical field, and students pursuing a career in mechanical engineering are taking a heavy load of classes in design, thermal and fluids systems, and solid body mechanics. Still, employers tell us it takes up to three years to bring a new engineer up to speed.

So what can you do to increase your chances of scoring an amazing internship or job? What are those qualities that employers want beyond the technical areas? What experiences will make you more attractive as a new professional who is ready to take their place among other engineers?

Join our panel of industry experts as they discuss the traits, skills and experience they seek in someone looking to join their companies.

Local employers discuss what they seek in a new employee

Presented January 13, 2017

About the Presenters

Rekluse Motor Sports

Sarah Haight is a graduate of Boise State University. She began working part-time for Rekluse while a faculty member at Boise State running the Mechanical Engineering Senior Design Program. Eventually she joined them as a full employee, rising quickly to become their Engineering Manager.

DC Engineering

Dustin Lilya has a diverse background that includes project management and design services for a wide range of projects. Previous projects include: Float glass manufacturing facilities, NAND/DRAM process engineering, commercial building design and energy retrofits. He has extensive experience transforming new and experimental ideas and technologies into useable products and services for a diverse client base. Dustin is a Professional Mechanical Engineer licensed in 6 states. He currently manages a diverse team of engineers and designers on energy and refrigeration related projects for DC Engineering.

POWER Engineers

Tony Clark is the Area Lead Mechanical Engineer for POWER Engineers in Boise, ID. After completing his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering at University of Missouri at Rolla, he joined Siemens Power Generation as a Field Service Engineer repairing gas turbines, steam turbines and generators at field locations around the US, mostly in the Gulf Coast area. Tony joined POWER Engineers when he moved to Boise in 2008 where he has worked on power plant design projects including gas turbine, combined cycle, biomass, geothermal, and solar thermal technologies. Tony is also chair of the ASME Power Division Combined Cycle Committee and secretary of the Treasure Valley Section of ASME.

Micron

Marty Lindgren has a Bachelor’s Degree in Chemical Engineering from UCSB, a Master’s Degree in Chemical Engineering from U of I, and is a registered P.E. in the state of Idaho, with over 25 years of engineering experience, primarily in facility operations and design. Currently at Micron he manages a multi-discipline engineering team that develops and applies corporate standards to both existing and new facilities around the world. Most recently the team was integral in the design and start-up of an $800M manufacturing facility in Singapore. Throughout his career he has actively participated in all areas of facility design and operations, although his personal areas of expertise involve all aspects of production water used at their facilities. This includes raw water acquisition, water purification for ultra-pure water used in manufacturing, waste stream segregation, waste water treatment, and water re-use and recycling.

MotivePower

Bart Heinz is the new Director of Engineering at MotivePower in Boise. Bart went to college at Kansas State University and graduated with a BSME. K-State was 0-27-1 in football (0 wins, 27 losses and 1 tie) while Bart was in college and their first win wasn’t until his Junior year. Bart has worked for Cessna Aircraft, Pella Windows, Bombardier Flight Test Center, and MotivePower and has held varying roles in Design, Analysis, Test, and Project Management. Bart and his family moved to Boise, Idaho from Wichita, Kansas in the Spring of 2016 and is currently the Director of Engineering at MotivePower.

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