Diane Donaghey, NV5’s Director of Business Development, sits down with Patrick O’Brien about his ongoing experience as an intern in NV5’s Hadley office. Patrick began his internship in June of 2021 and will continue part time through the fall and winter while completing his senior year at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst where he is pursuing a Bachelor of Science degree in mechanical engineering.
When did you know you wanted to become a part of the MEP/FP engineering industry? What were you first steps in getting involved?
I knew I wanted to get into the design field and when I was looking for potential internships, I came across the NV5 listing for a mechanical engineering intern. After reading it, I noticed it was really design intensive and right up my alley. After working here for 3+ months I realized I really enjoy the MEP field. It brings together all my favorite classes: thermodynamics, fluid mechanics, heat transfer, and my design classes.
What skills do you most want to gain from this experience?
The main skill I want to gain from this experience is real-life on the job experience from solving engineering problems to understanding the process a project must go through. I was also hoping to improve my communication skills as this is essential when coordinating with other trades. I try to learn something new in everything I do here.
What have you enjoyed most about your experience with NV5?
I like that every day is different, some days I will be in the office working on designs and calculations and other days I get the opportunity to go out in the field and see in real life what I have been working on. There are different projects to work on every week that challenge me in different ways. I also work with a great group of people who have helped guide me since I started here.
Any cool projects?
I got the opportunity to work on a UMass medical building where I helped convert hand drawn drawings older than me into AutoCAD. I also got to see how HVAC is designed and laid out for a massive building which is much more complicated.
Thank you, Patrick, for spending your summer with NV5! We’re glad you are having a great intern experience. We wish you luck in your final year at University of Massachusetts, Amherst.
If you are looking for an internship or other position, we encourage you to review our open positions and apply today. It’s a great time to be at NV5! https://www.nv5.com/careers/