Glenn Baudewyn

Can you describe your role/position at Umicore?

In the Process Maintenance department, I am responsible for the preparation and follow-up of work activities associated with construction. I also make sure the coordination and collaboration with 5 external companies go smoothly.

What do you like about your job?

The variation keeps it interesting: every day I am working on something different and I always learn something new. While I am at work, I spend 50% of my time at my desk and 50% in the field. In that way, I'm continuously in contact with other specialist fields, such as mechanical engineering and electrical engineering. That means I pick up a great deal of knowledge that is much broader than just one single domain.

What do you like about working at Umicore?

You get a lot of freedom so that you can do your job in the best possible way, and I really appreciate that. They listen to what everyone has to say at Umicore! You are all working together to achieve the same goal so the factory runs in the best possible way. On top of that, I get to work with great colleagues in a really positive working atmosphere. So all in all, I find my work tremendously satisfying.

Why did you want to work at Umicore?

After I graduated, I didn’t know exactly what job I wanted to do. Thanks to the Engineering Traineeship of Umicore, I was able to learn about industrial processes in a wide range of different departments, and find out what I was really interested in. Furthermore, as a trainee I had the opportunity to get to know more about Umicore itself.

What do you look forward to when you set off to work in the morning?

Every day is full of challenges, because you always have new problems turning up somewhere. And they are never the same problems! I get a great deal of satisfaction out of solving these problems, especially if I know it prevents any lost production.

What has been the highlight of your time at Umicore so far?

In the summer of 2019, there was a fire in the smelter unit. A great deal of repair work needed to be carried out. We wanted to get everything up and running again within four weeks. But thanks to all the hard work we put into it, the department was operational again after only 3 weeks. It took a lot of blood, sweat, and tears, but the end result made it all worthwhile.

Any advice for newcomers?

Just be yourself! Give it everything you've got and somebody is bound to take notice sooner or later. That way you are almost automatically guaranteed to get promoted.