That time I had a job interview in Molsheim

"Rustholes-Are-Weight-Reduction" (rustholes-are-weight-reduction) 08/05/2016 at 05:10 • Filed to: None

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A few days back, I handed in my resignation letter. Now I’m looking for a new job. And that go me thinking of the last time I was searching for a job and how I got there.

Back in 2013, I got my engineering degree and got my first real job that didn’t include filling shelves in a supermarket or shoveling holes. I started working as a project engineer for a rank 1 automotive supplier in May. It was a nice job, even though it was a bit too far away from the technical aspect for me. I started there as a consultant and was quickly told that if everything works fine, I would be offered a permanent job beginning January 2014.

The first months went by, I did my job fairly well i guess, and it was confirmed that I would get the job. I also started enjoying the possibilities that a steady income were enabling, and offered myself a nice Mazda RX-8.

In October, I started getting additional projects, since it was planned that I stay there longer. I had a lot of work at the time and as I started staying late to get the job done. On October 25th, I cancelled my day off as I had lots of things to do.

On my way to work, I got into an accident.

!!! UNKNOWN CONTENT TYPE !!!

I don’t remember anything from that day, all I remember is how I went to bed on Thursday night, and how I woke up in a hospital bed on Saturday at 3 A.M. I was intubated and heavily drugged. I was told that exiting a blind corner, I had crashed into an oncoming car. It wasn’t determined who was at fault, either I had taken the corner too wide, or the other person had cut it. in the end, it didn’t really matter. The other person luckily only had light injuries. i was a bit more broken.

Notice what’s left of the front left wheel

My car was completely obliterated. The impact crumpled the left side of the car, tore the drivers side front door away, and pushed the steering wheel against my chest. The firefighters removed the passenger side doors, chopped the roof off, and pulled me out of the car. I wasn’t in a better shape.

Small overlap frontal crashes leave some destruction

My left leg was completely crushed. I broke my left shinbone and fibula, left femur, hipbone, left elbow, and right forearm. I also had a torn spleen and a torn diaphragm, causing my lower organs to push on my lungs, making it hard to breathe.

My bones were repaired by internal fixation, the spleen removed, and the diaphragm sewed. I stayed at the hospital for 3 months and stayed at home 3 additional months.

I returned to work for the same automotive supplier for 6 months. I had been replaced, since the project had to continue. My job was gone. Actually, it didn’t make an sense to hire me again. During hose 6 months, I mostly sat around and had nothing much to do. They eventually let me go.

As I was looking for a job, a friend of mine who was working as a head hunter got an interesting job: he had to find an engineer with an automotive background, to do maintenance and repairs on hypercars around the world. The customer was Bugatti.
The job included checking the vehicle data (sent by the car to the manufacturer) and scheduling and performing basic maintenance and repairs. This meant a lot of organisation, travelling, and working on some of the most sought after cars in the world. This also meant that if a customer had a problem on his car and decided to call you on Saturday night, 11 PM, you would have to take the next plane to get there and solve their problem.
The nicer part of the job would be the test drives and the deliveries of the “next model”.

Three profiles were sent to Bugatti. There were a 40 year old father of 2, who had worked in maintenance for the major part of his life, a 35 year old who had been working for 10+ years in maintenance, which was originally from Alsace, and currently lived in Australia with his wife, and there was me, a 26 year engineer, with no attachments, quite a bit of knowledge about cars, having grown up in a garage, but not much “official” experience.

Only picture i could sneakily take

Only two of us were invited to an interview. The first candidate wasn’t kept, since the job was to replace someone who changed jobs to see his family more. I was the first to get an interview.

I went there, well prepared, well dressed, shaved, having re-read every bit of information I could find about the Veyron. I took the RX-8 (I had bought another one), because dynamism. I was received by a HR person, a young, nice good looking woman, we exchanged some words and were quickly joined by the manager of the maintenance team. Since all the conference rooms were taken, we went to the lobby to do the job interview.

The lobby is where the factory deliveries are made. What happens is when someone wants to get their car directly from the factory, they have this nice lobby that has some really comfortable couches, a displayed W16 engine with transmission, samples of all the colors available for the Veyron, and of course, a parking spot, where the clients car would be presented. When I was there, a moss green and yellow Veyron Grand Sport Vitesse was on display.

Not my picture, but I guess there aren’t many in that color combo (God it’s ugly)

So I was there, sitting next to a 1000+ hypercar, doing a job interview.
At first, i was a bit nervous, but really excited but i quickly calmed down. We went through all the details of the job offer, i told them about me, everything went really well. I nailed the interview, and I thought to myself: the only reason they wouldn’t take me would be if the other guy is even better.

He was even better. I don’t know all the details about his interview, but I know he ended up doing a tour through the production facility. They took him over me. He left his current job of 10+ years, came back to Alsace, and started working fr Bugatti.
At first I was really jealous, but later, my friend told me there was a change in management, and the let him go after his 3 months probation time. Dick move.

I eventually found a job a few weeks later, as a consultant for another automotive supplier. The only drawback was that it was a 2 hours drive away from home (home is where m cars are parked). My consulting agency told me they had another customer that was closer to me, but I lacked some experience, and after 3-4 months, they would send me there. It’s been 18 months now. The current customer still needs somebody, my agency still tells me they will find me something closer as soon as the current contract runs out, they still extend my mission without asking me. Since I can’t really refuse to continue the mission, I finally decided to quit. I still have 3 months to work here, but after that, I’ll finally be able to do something else than working, driving, sleeping...

The other solution would have been to move closer, but right now, I live next to my parents, allowing me to park/work on my cars and my puppy can stay with them while I’m at work. I couldn’t leave he alone all day in an appartment.

Thanks if you kept reading until here, have a picture of my awesome puppy in my awesome Pajero:

I know it’s not real offroading, but I wouldn’t try serious stuff with those tires anyway.

Jobjoris > Rustholes-Are-Weight-Reduction 08/05/2016 at 05:35

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Sounds like the regular consultancy firm ;-)

So where are you, Alsace region as well? Then Germany isn’t that far away, what about the automotive industry of Stuttgart???

Happy hunting! Glad you seem to have survived that horrible accident!

Birddog > Rustholes-Are-Weight-Reduction 08/05/2016 at 05:37

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You lived through that?? Man of Steel!

That Rottie and Pajero are awesome! Sorry about Bugatti but it sounds like you got the better end of the deal.

BvdV - The Dutch Engineer > Rustholes-Are-Weight-Reduction 08/05/2016 at 06:00

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Wow, you sure got lucky in the crash.

In hindsight it seems you got off well not getting the Bugatti job.

May I ask what your educational background, and area of specialisation is? I’ll be entering the job market in a couple of years after finishing my university master in Automotive technology, so I’m quite interested in how the job market is right now.

Stapleface > Rustholes-Are-Weight-Reduction 08/05/2016 at 06:21

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Thanks for sharing the story. Glad to see you made it out alive from that wreck. It's hard to give up a job, but it sounds like you made the right decision. It's trying on your sanity to spend hours in a commute to a job that you don't really love.

Matt Le Chat > Rustholes-Are-Weight-Reduction 08/05/2016 at 06:57

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The whole “...would be if the other guy was even better.....He was even better” joke had me laugh out loud XD . Cheers and glad to see you alive after that wreck!

Rustholes-Are-Weight-Reduction > Birddog 08/05/2016 at 06:57

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Man of steel ==> partially now, indeed :) (I think it’s titanium though)

Thanks! My dad and I put a lot of work into the Pajero to make it what it is today. the dog is actually not a Rott, it’s a Beauceron - Bernese Mountain Dog mix, but she resembles a Rottweiler a lot.

The Bugatti gig would have been awesome, and it would have looked good on my resume, but in the end, I think the 3 months duration would have raised more questions than anything.

Rustholes-Are-Weight-Reduction > BvdV - The Dutch Engineer 08/05/2016 at 07:09

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I did! I’m lucky to be alive and able to walk again!

Yeah, must be a bummer to be let go after 3 months, especially if you left a good job for that.

I got a bachelor’s degree in Automotive Engineering, followed by a double diploma in Mechanical Engineering in Karlsruhe, DE and Besançon, FR. Karlsruhe didn’t offer a masters degree in AE, and the DD program was perfectly fitted for me since my two mother tongues are French and German.
The job market is OK if you’re flexible, and it also depends on what you want to do. My problem is that I don’t want to move, I have several industries around where I live, but they were never searching for people while I was searching for a job. Right now there is a lot of demand for designers, testing, and programming.

Rustholes-Are-Weight-Reduction > Stapleface 08/05/2016 at 07:13

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Thanks for reading it! Yeah it was a close call.
The thing is my job isn’t bad, it’s just way too far away. I’m gonna miss my colleagues, but right now I’m away from 6 AM to 8 PM. It’s really tiring and I don’t really have a perspective.

Rustholes-Are-Weight-Reduction > Jobjoris 08/05/2016 at 07:20

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Exactly! The only people who enjoy working for consulting firms are those in the back office.

I live in northern Alsace. Germany is 5 km away from my home. Stuttgart is 2 hours away, so I don’t really want to go there, but we have a fair share of suppliers in the region. There is also the Mercedes Benz Truck division near Karlsruhe (1 hour away) and the Mercedes Benz Rastatt (35 minutes away) building the A, B and GLA classes. So if I search well, it shouldn’t be a problem to get a decent job.

Jobjoris > Rustholes-Are-Weight-Reduction 08/05/2016 at 07:25

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1 hour driving would be/is the max for me, gives a good moment to release all the stress of work before getting home.

Good luck with the search!

Rustholes-Are-Weight-Reduction > Jobjoris 08/05/2016 at 07:29

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Thanks!
1 hour was my limit too, I only accepted this offer because they said it was temporary. I should have known better, but hey, a job is a job.

Rustholes-Are-Weight-Reduction > Matt Le Chat 08/05/2016 at 07:31

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Thanks, I’m glad you enjoyed it! Yeah, was a close call.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > Rustholes-Are-Weight-Reduction 08/05/2016 at 07:47

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You ever figure out what happened in the accident? That seems wild to me to not remember the whole day, but it makes sense considering the injuries. In my mind, all I can think about though is how much that would cost here in the US. You would have been in debt literally forever due to the medical expenses.

Anyways, as a fellow Mechanical engineer its interesting to see how cutthroat the automotive industry is. Sure, cars are my number one interest but no way could I ever work for an auto company. I gotta figure out where I actually want to end up in 5-10 years though. Seems like I just enjoy working anywhere with a good work/life balance so its difficult to pick a direction lol.

BvdV - The Dutch Engineer > Rustholes-Are-Weight-Reduction 08/05/2016 at 07:51

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Nice to see I’m not the only university level Automotive engineer around here.

Yeah I think your right about the flexibility. On the one hand there are some Automotive companies here in the south of the Netherlands, but on the other hand I think I might have a better chance at a job in the south of Germany, though I’m still doubting if I would want to move for a job, luckily I’ve still got a few years to make up my mind.

shop-teacher > Rustholes-Are-Weight-Reduction 08/05/2016 at 08:06

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Wow, that was a pretty brutal accident! And a good example of why the small overlap crash tests need to be put in place. Glad you survived!

Rustholes-Are-Weight-Reduction > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) 08/05/2016 at 08:07

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The police report says that upon impact, the 2 cars made a 180° turn and rolled backwards in the ditch. I don’t know much more. There were no braking marks and since the cars had moved after impact, there was no way to prove if either of us was above the line. I was pumped up with morphine for more than a week, so I guess that affect the memory. I also had staples on my head, so I must have hit something.
I saw part of the costs, my hospital room for 2 weeks in intensive care alone was about 40.000€. My guess is that the whole thing cost at least 300.000€.

having never worked outside the automotive industry, I don’t know what it’s like in other fields. I have been told several times to try something different, I might do it for my next job.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > Rustholes-Are-Weight-Reduction 08/05/2016 at 08:26

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I would have to imagine that gives you quite the “life is special and short” feeling quite often. It is hard for anyone to truly contemplate mortality and such until they are faced with something like that. It just seems like most people take life for granted if they haven’t experienced that sort of thing.

Oh yeah, variety of experience is great. I know that my time spent doing some medical industry stuff let me know that I don’t want to do that. Sure it was interesting and challenging enough, but its just not the cool to me. For some reason, I only REALLY enjoy working things that blow stuff up or otherwise help with that task. I bet I could have fun though working with F1 cars or complex power generation systems of some sort. There is just so much out there for Engineers that is always mind blowing to me to just focus on one thing and stick with that.

Rustholes-Are-Weight-Reduction > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) 08/05/2016 at 09:32

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I enjoy the little things more now. As you say, one tends to take life for granted. I often ask myself the question “is it worth it?” more often now. Because in the end, if you don’t enjoy your life, what do you live for?

I can understand that, blowing things up is fun! I don’t know what I’m gonna do next, but I hope it will be a bit more interesting than the MS Office-engineering I do now.

Rustholes-Are-Weight-Reduction > shop-teacher 08/05/2016 at 09:36

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If you think about it, it is long overdue to test these scenarios, since it’s more likely you hit another car with partial overlap than full frontal.

shop-teacher > Rustholes-Are-Weight-Reduction 08/05/2016 at 09:39

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Yep, absolutely.

mazda616 > Rustholes-Are-Weight-Reduction 08/05/2016 at 09:55

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So you drive the RX-8 two hours each way? At least you have a fun car for the commute!

That crash was gnarly, man. I’m glad you came out of it though! Scary stuff, indeed.

Good luck on the job front. I know searching for one absolutely sucks. I am lucky to have one that is simply an 8-5 Monday through Friday gig and has a good work life balance.

Your dog is very cute. I love dogs.

Rustholes-Are-Weight-Reduction > mazda616 08/05/2016 at 10:05

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I went to work with the RX-8 a few times, but it’s boring since it’s mostly highway miles, and it’s way too thirsty for this commute. My current daily driver is an A4 TDI.

Thanks. One of the firefighters said he had never seen a car this wrecked in which the driver survived.

For my next job, my main goal is to have some free time again, so I can waste it on stupid things :-)

Thanks, I love how she turned out, dogs are the best!

notsomethingstructural > Rustholes-Are-Weight-Reduction 08/05/2016 at 10:42

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I just got an 8 and confirm they are thirsty indeed.

Glad to hear you made it out alive. Thanks for sharing. The mechanical side of engineering seems to be in a strange place right now - I’m on the structural side and I’m hearing more and more about MechE’s having trouble while the structural guys can’t get placed fast enough. Totally backwards from what it’s been the last 20-30 years, if not more. Good luck, amigo.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > Rustholes-Are-Weight-Reduction 08/05/2016 at 10:51

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Ugh MS Office engineering. I know that all too well! Like I went through years of all this thermal systems, and dynamics, and different mechanics classes to then use MS Office and sit in meetings to figure things out. Every time I get something relatively technical to work on though I am gungho about it and have so much fun. I would love to just never see Excel and Powerpoint again, that would be awesome haha.

Nauraushaun > Rustholes-Are-Weight-Reduction 08/06/2016 at 08:42

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How was your recovery? Did you recover 100%?

Just goes to show that none of us know what life has in store for us. An interview with Bugatti is quite the silver lining to come from that accident, horrific though it was. And even though you missed out, sounds like the other guy didn’t get such a good break either.

Rustholes-Are-Weight-Reduction > Nauraushaun 08/08/2016 at 03:02

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My left leg is now about an inch shorter than the right one and I can’t flex it as much. I can’t fully extend my left arm. On some days my legs and arms will hurt as if I was 70. If I run, my left leg will remind me not to. And due to the missing spleen, I’m sick more often. But all in all, I’m OK.

Yes, definitely. When I was working on my first job, I thought this would be what I would do for at least 2-3 years. On one hand, it’s reassuring that life can’t be planned ahead all the time, on the other hand, it can be terrifying when you think about how quickly things can change.

Nauraushaun > Rustholes-Are-Weight-Reduction 08/08/2016 at 03:06

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Ugh that’s awful. At least you’re okay.

Yeah you never know. I’m comfortable in my first real job, it’s been nearly 5 years. But occasionally someone is let go, reminds you it can happen to anyone at any time for any reason.

I always relate it back to Game of Thrones :P I don’t know if you watch, but when you watch it the second time and you hear all the logical assumptions people have about the future, and you know nothing will turn out that way, it really drives it home. It’s fictional ‘course but the more I think about it the more parallels I find with real life.

When you do try to plan, sometimes you look back and your planning helped, and sometimes you made the completely wrong decision though there’s no way you could’ve known at the time.

Rustholes-Are-Weight-Reduction > Nauraushaun 08/08/2016 at 03:28

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Yes I watch it, but I’m still at season 4. what I ask myself is do the actors actually know how long they’ll be at the show? Their job security is terrible.

Nauraushaun > Rustholes-Are-Weight-Reduction 08/08/2016 at 03:43

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Cool :D

They probably did for the earlier seasons, since the books were written. These days not so much I suppose. But of course, some characters make surprising returns later on.

duurtlang > Rustholes-Are-Weight-Reduction 08/09/2016 at 17:13

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Regarding your love for Mazdas, interesting cars, rust (repairable) and your location: check this ebay listing. Should be less than an hour from you. Mazda 929 coupe, 1984, second owner

http://www.ebay.de/itm/Mazda-929-…

Rustholes-Are-Weight-Reduction > duurtlang 08/10/2016 at 02:46

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Thanks for the info, that’s really close actually, about 40 minutes away from home. I’m curious how much it will fetch. But at the moment, I have no time and place for yet another project car.

Also, I’m intrigued by this purple RX-8 in the background:

I thought his color on a RX-8 was Japan only. I might ask about it.

Flavien Vidal > Rustholes-Are-Weight-Reduction 08/12/2016 at 05:15

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Putain... Difficile de croire que tu sois sorti de ce crash avec “seulement” 3 mois d’hopital. Je suis certain que je ne serai jamais ressorti vivant de ma SA22C après un truc pareil... Flippant. Tu n’as jamais ressayé de te faire embaucher par Buggatti depuis?

PS: J’étais a Illkirch il y a pas très longtemps, apparemment c’est dans ton coin :)

Rustholes-Are-Weight-Reduction > Flavien Vidal 08/16/2016 at 06:27

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Effectivement,j’ai eu beaucoup de chance! Je pense que les équipements de sécurité ont bien fait leur travail.
Je n’ai pas ré-essayé de me faire embaucher chez eux. J’ai trouvé du boulot pas longtemps après et je n’ai pas vraiment cherché à changer depuis.
e suis effectivement dans le coin, Illkirch c’est à 1h de chez moi. Qu’est ce que tu y faisais? J’ai vu des voitures japonaises importées chez ARD Works a Erstein, tu y es pour quelque chose?

Flavien Vidal > Rustholes-Are-Weight-Reduction 08/16/2016 at 06:53

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Non je n’exporte rien, j’importe au Japon seulement et plus pour m’amuser qu’autre chose. Sinon je suis breton, mais j’ai un pote qui habite à Illkirch :)

Et oui énormément de chance... Sans casque, ceinture 5 points, Hans et rollbar intégrale, pas moyen de survivre à ça dans une sa22c lol. Je comprends que tu ais repris une autre rx8 après un crash pareil lol. Vraiment hallucinant...