As we arrived Høvik, we were welcomed by Vilde. Vilde usually works with information risk management, but for the summer she was to be our DNV project manager and designated supplier of good mood 😊 Along with Kristina, the project owner and familiar face from just about every career fair there is, Vilde guided us through the first days of onboarding.
The team consisted of eight master students from various fields of study at UiO, NHH and NTNU: Morten, Amalie, Andrea, Vetle, Ingelin, August, Johann and Fredrik. We had lots of fun together this summer – both at work and after work. One thing we really experienced through working together was how different competencies can result in great solutions.
After some teambuilding, presentations and some hilarious photo-shooting, we got our challenge: How can we improve the way DNV handles requirements? Now, approving stuff is what DNV does. By making sure all kinds of structures and systems work, DNV safeguards life, property and the environment. The problem is: A large portion of this approval work is based on 1.5 million DNV requirements buried deep within some old pdf files. Some even still uses hard copies thick as bricks – a rare sight for millennials such as ourselves. So, how could we find a way to make the day easier for the thousands of approval engineers out there?
After weeks of brainstorming, interviews and lots of learning, we came up with our concept: SPRUCE handles and structures all DNV requirements by the use of ontologies and natural language processing. Doesn’t sound very familiar? Well, we didn’t really know much about it before we started either. But our brilliant DNV project manager Vilde made sure we got proper training and access to a range of DNV experts.
After the intensive and fun six-week period, SPRUCE was presented for about 400 employees and live streamed. We were really glad to get a course in presentation technique during our preparations, and learned a lot about how one can present a complex concept in an way that is entertaining and understandable.
Høvik is without a doubt the best location for any summer job. The office buildings surround a nice green park, and there was a dock 100 meters from our office. We had unlimited access to kayaks, and even spent a night on one of the small islands in the fjord before paddling back the next morning for work. We also joined after work events arranged by CONNECT – a community of young DNV employees.
We learned a lot during this summer about teamwork, concept development, presentation technique, new technologies and how things are organized in a large company. We also got a few coffee chats with managers to discuss potential full time jobs, which was very useful.
The summer project was a great experience!
Morten, Amalie, Andrea, Vetle, Ingelin, August, Johann and Fredrik.
