Student story - Dhaval Hathalia
Dhaval M Hathalia is now back on campus working towards his BEng Systems Engineering but he spent last year near Bristol working for BVT Surface Fleet Limited, now part of BAE Systems.
Here, he describes one project he worked on during his placement. “To prepare me to take part in sea trials, I first had to pass my Type 45 Project-Sea Survival Circuit Training, which took place onboard HMS Dauntless. The training was rigorous and included emergency ship evacuation procedures to ensure the safety of everyone on board and to safeguard as much of the ship as possible. Getting into a dive suit at speed was an interesting experience!” “But I did survive (!) and was then straight onboard HMS Dauntless for nine days managing the Observation Reports on a daily basis and reporting to the team every evening. With me were not only the Royal Navy as you’d expect but also project teams from the collaborating companies: BAE Systems, Rolls-Royce, EADS Astrium and Thales – so I was working with the best. We were out at sea every day for nine days, anchoring near to shore each night.”
“During this time I took part in the communications trials which included sea-to-air communication: this meant we had a Falcon flying over us and at various distances testing the comms until we were satisfied that everything worked. I had to prepare the relevant documents before hand, as well as creating confidential acceptance documents after the customer (MoD) agreed that the conducted trial met their requirements.” “When the ship’s radar is working, it emits high frequency radiation hazardous to humans. The Radiation Hazard trials in which I also participated are therefore vital to ensure that the flight deck and the upper decks are safe for personnel.” Celebrations and Congratulations all round!
“The onboard work I was doing contributed directly to a major project milestone and the securing of a £12million payment – and the Sea Trials for HMS Dauntless were completed two days ahead of schedule. I was incredibly proud when my contribution was recognized personally by the T45 Chief Engineer and T45 Combat System Delegated Design Authority.” “I had an amazing time onboard HMS Dauntless - it gave me a whole new experience on top of my placement and it was great to know that my work was valuable to the teams working on such an important and major project.”
Dhaval won the Siemens Medal 2009 for his outstanding work.