Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1098973
APRIL 2019 I SMT007 MAGAZINE 47 Matties: Why did you choose to work for Instrumems? Diament: The opportunity arose when I was finishing my undergraduate senior thesis. I worked with nanowire flow sensors to inte- grate them on a small UAV for real-time control in windy environments, so I had a history of working with the technology. The profes- sor who served as my advisor is one of the co-founders of Instrumems, and he presented the opportunity to me. It was an attractive offer because although I was looking at bigger, more established aerospace companies, I didn't want to feel like I was getting boxed in. Even if I had some upward mobility within one of these giant companies, it still wasn't as much my vibe to work for a larger corporation. I like the small size of Instrumems because I get to do both technical work, such as running tests in our makeshift wind tunnel, and I also get to come to conferences like these to network with people. It's really dynamic, and I feel a lot of personal meaning in the work that I'm doing because I can immedi- ately see the impact it has on the company; it doesn't get lost in the machinery of a larger corporation. Matties: And this is your first career job coming out of college? Diament: Exactly. I've done internships before, but this is the first full-time position. Matties: Do you expect to be with this company for years to come? Diament: Hopefully. That's one of the advan- tages of getting in at the ground floor is being able to grow with the company. Matties: How is the company performing so far? Has it met the expectations or goals? Diament: We're quickly meeting the early tech- nical milestones that we set out for ourselves. Obviously, we still have work to do because there is still a gap that needs to be filled between university sensors and commercial sensors, but we're making strong progress. Matties: As we look around this room, you might be the youngest person here, which is one of the topics that we talk about often in our industry. Diament: I've noticed that. Matties: Tell me about that experience because others must see the world differently than you. What do you run into? Diament: For me, it has actually been kind of nice. It's almost liberating in a way being so young because I feel like everyone sees me as a naïve kid fresh out of college who doesn't know much. And that gives me the freedom to ask a bunch of questions and learn from people who are much more experienced than me. Matties: They may see some of that, but I would also say that they are glad to see it. Because when you look around, you're one of the few young people here, but you're in a room full of manufacturing, which isn't necessarily a glam- orous job in the world right now. That's why A closer look at the construction of the Instrumems sensor assembly.