Yovko Handzhiev, Senior Mechanical Design Engineer at UltraFlex Power Technologies talks about his career journey and how he’s found his passion. Read on to find out!
What brought you to UltraFlex?
I’ve always had a passion for designing things. By the time I finished high school, I already knew I wanted to major in Engineering. I worked for a few years in several different companies that helped me define what I enjoy in my job. Then, I decided to search for a new career path and UltraFlex provided what I was looking for – an opportunity to design machines for unique applications.
We often work on custom projects that have numerous challenges and this makes the job in UltraFlex very interesting. Even the design of our standard machines is exciting because we are trying to improve the products daily by implementing the latest technology.
What have you learned from working in this industry?
A mechanical designer must know the client and always put himself in their shoes. I am very happy when I know that I’ve created a machine that completely facilitates the customer’s needs.
What’s the most challenging project you had to work on?
With every year the challenges grow but so far it is “ROBOBRAZE” and “DRAGON15”. It was a challenging project because I had to make the transformer as small as possible to reduce its size and weight in order to be handled easily by the operator and robot as well.
What are the most important skills you’ve learned?
To find potential problems in the early stages of a project because if you fail to do that it could lead to serious problems and lots of wasted time. I’ve also learned that it is very helpful to be well organized.
What part of your daily activities empower you to be creative?
Setting goals early in the morning.
Is there some piece of wisdom that you would like to share with people on the same career path?
As a mechanical design engineer, you must be prepared to constantly learn and acquire new knowledge. Being a good team player is extremely important because you will have to work with a lot of people on a daily basis.