Intern Experience at MEL, Inc.: An Internship Report

Abstract

...The author spent a one-year internship at MEL, Inc., a civil and mechanical engineering consulting firm located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. By special arrangement with the president of the firm, the author was able to participate in roles at various levels within the firm. These activities included engineering design, supervision and management, project cost control, and interface with top level management. During this period, the author has been engaged in the following assignments: 1. Serving as senior project engineer on the Louisiana Training Institution air conditioning and heating project, 2. Serving at the review and advisory level for three projects, 3. Studying and implementing computer aided design and drafting system for MEL, Inc. 4. Developing a projet cost control system that is interactive with the firm's payroll program. 5. Upgrading the firm's computer capacity. 6. Performing special assignments from the President, Executive Vice-President, Manager of Operation and Manager of Business and Fiscal Affairs at MEL, Inc. These activities involved the application of scientific principles to the design, installation, and improvement of integrated systems of people, materials, and equipment to provide the most effective operating and work procedures. As a result of this involvement in a wide range of assignments, the author now has a broadly based experience in a consulting engineering firm as both engineer and manager. The author also found that well-developed, practical courses in communication, business, engineering, law, and management from the Doctor of Engineering program at Texas A&M University contributed greatly to this successful internship with MEL, Incorporated.