Canterbury University

Engineering Support

Supporting Young Engineers at Canterbury University

Most years, Mike Klemick, National Specifications Manager for Dimond, throws on his backpack, dusts off his skateboard, and heads to the universities to present to final year Bachelor of Engineering students, about specific engineering themes.

This year Mike presented a talk to a group of final-year students at the Canterbury University, focused on purlins, flooring and roofing.

A BE graduate himself, Mike really enjoys presenting to these students, as he says “ I was once where they are now”, nearing the end of their studies, excited about the careers they are about to embark on, and hungry for guidance and contacts.

Mike reiterates the presentations are valuable for several reasons,

“Primarily it helps keep Dimond top of mind when these students begin work, I give out my business card, and other useful materials at these talks, so they already have a contact person when it comes time for them to design.

It’s also a chance for Dimond to give back to the Engineering fraternity. We work closely with engineers as they are a key part of our business, and by doing this we are helping contribute now, to key future partnerships.

Finally, as a group we work closely with Universities in terms of joint research, for example, we currently have PhD students working with us at Dimond helping us with product innovation and development. These presentations, help reinforce those academic relationships”

The students really benefit from it too, this year Mikes business cards literally went like Hot Cakes, and he received a thank you note from the Canterbury Department of Engineering Associate Professor, emphasising the benefit that the students gained from his talk.