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Opening Doors to ArcelorMittal: MUDEC Intern Claire Berry

By Claire Berry, MUDEC Fall 2019

During the fall of 2019, I had the amazing opportunity to live and study in Luxembourg for the semester. During this time I spent the weekends traveling with my best friends, and by the end of the semester, I had traveled to over 14 countries. I had never been to Europe before, so traveling was an incredible experience for me as I had learned so much about different cultures and languages. Living in Luxembourg was also incredible because the average citizen speaks 4 languages, and this mix of so many cultures was an extremely enriching experience.

Claire Bailey presenting on ArcelorMittalBeing a mechanical engineering major, I have not had much time outside of my studies to enjoy myself, so this semester was a nice break from the rigorous schoolwork-filled semesters I am accustomed to. Although I was not taking any engineering courses, I was working as a mechanical engineering intern at the headquarters of ArcelorMittal during the week. For those of you who are not familiar, ArcelorMittal is a steel company that began in Luxembourg and has now grown to be the largest steel producer in the world. I had an incredible experience with this company, as they trusted me to help design the 2020 sheet piling sales catalog.

While I was there I worked under Andrea Barcelo, Franck Pichoff, and Thierry Laux, and they were an incredible group of mentors that taught me many important aspects about the steel industry, as well as life in Europe. To gain familiarity with the steel industry, they had me read research articles about different patents and studies, as well as textbooks on sheet piling. Gaining this knowledge was extremely beneficial to help provide the necessary knowledge to improve the sales catalog.

Overall, I enjoyed ArcelorMittal because, although I am a mechanical engineering major, I also have an interest in technical sales. This experience gave me an opportunity to gain knowledge in both; while one mentor, Franck Pichoff, has experience in marketing and was able to share his knowledge in this field, Andrea Barcelo, a female civil engineer, was also able to help guide me and share her experience in her field. While working under both of them, I was able to help create the 2020 sheet piling catalog, keeping in mind the technical information needed and the marketing aspects desired by the company. I am so thankful I had the opportunity to spend a semester traveling the world while gaining industry experience in my field. I am forever grateful for the many amazing people I have met and will cherish this experience forever.

Read more about the internships at ArcelorMittal in this recent post from the MUDEC LinkedIn page.