By Rebecca Year 10 

From the 25th to the 28th of June of Year 10 work experience week I had the fantastic opportunity to go to the Ariel Motor Company. I worked alongside engineers in the engineering department for 3 of the 4 days and was in the workshop for the other one day. 

On the first day, I was introduced to the two engineers who were in on that day, the team at Ariel is small however highly efficient and impeccably kind. I was also shown the 3D CAD software that they use which is called Solid Works. Throughout my time with the engineering department, I redesigned and adjusted 2 brackets for the Ariel Atom 4R as the holes no longer aligned between the bracket and the component it was designed for due to complications, I also filled out spreadsheets as well as worked on some other jobs of which I cannot disclose much or any detail as the project is yet to be released. I was not even allowed to take photos in certain areas due to this. 

My time in the workshop, although short was very informative and exciting. I initially added the wishbones onto one of the many custom Atom 4Rs being built there and added in the shock absorbers. I got to experience the process of how cars are produced to such a detailed specification and entirely custom hand built as well as the complexity of the process that they do to ensure consistency between cars. What was incredibly exciting was the fact that in the afternoon I got the privilege to be driven around in a real Ariel Atom where I got to experience what it feels like to ride in one of them and the pure monstrous power they have. 

Overall, work experience week for me was such an amazing experience and an incredible opportunity for me to delve deeper into my ideas for potential careers in motorsports and engineering and solidify my view on what the job entails while also having a lot of fun. Most importantly I have gained many skills in such a short amount of time and strengthened my ability to use CAD software and my confidence in my skill set.