My name is Bram Boerboom, and I study Mechanical Engineering at HAN University of Applied Sciences in Arnhem. I’ve always been interested in technology. That’s why I wanted to follow a broad technical study programme, so that I could have more job opportunities later on.
I was looking at graduation internships for my final semester. Through HAN’s career services, I saw that the Arnhem office had a number of open projects that appealed to me. After visiting the website, my impression of VIRO was so positive that I immediately contacted them for more information. During my first interview, they told me that I could propose my own assignment, which got me thinking. I’ve worked at an oyster mushroom farm since I was 15 years old, and one of my tasks is to make ‘cultivation sachets’. These are bags filled with a substrate that helps oyster mushrooms grow. The disadvantage of these bags is that they each weigh 20 kg and have to be lifted onto racks by hand.
So, for my graduation assignment, I designed a machine to make filling and lifting these bags easier for employees. The challenge was to keep production speeds high and costs low. By using a methodical design, calculations, and CAD software, I try to produce the best final design possible.
I enjoy doing my graduation internship at VIRO. Despite a lot of the communication being digital, I get proper guidance and technical support to finish my project. My goal is to graduate by mid June. I have no specific plans once I’m finished – I might contribute to the production of the machine I designed. That would be great!
