Coventry, Ministry of Education and Culture — At the end of 2022 four Indonesian students received IISMA scholarships, Dwi Hesti Akmaliza (Gadjah Mada University), Usama Azmir Fathany (Nopember Institute of Technology), Salsa Billa Prames Wati Teja Sukmana (Malang State Polytechnic), and Taufiq Hidayat (University of Indonesia) had the opportunity to undergo an internship program with a focus on projects related to sustainable packaging development for four months at an international company originating from England, Unipart Logistics for Jaguar Land Rover (JLR).
With the industrial experience scheme, the main objective of their project is to analyze the packaging cycle at Unipart Logistics for JLR, with the output being an increase in the sustainability of the packaging cycle carried out by Unipart Logistics. In the early stages, they were assigned to independently conduct research on Packaging Sustainability and present the results of the research to Unipart Logistics.
“Our manager gave us the initial assignment to conduct research on sustainability in general as well as within the scope of logistics and packaging practices carried out by other companies in the automotive industry,” said Salsa.
Meanwhile, Taufiq added that they were also given the opportunity to make direct observations at one of the Unipart Logistics warehouses. “The observations we made were to find out the warehousing process, starting from receiving goods from suppliers until goods are sent to retailers,” said Taufiq.
Through this internship activity, Unipart hopes that students can provide their suggestions and input regarding a more sustainable packaging system in accordance with Unipart’s focus on implementing environmentally friendly business practices.
“We were also asked to provide suggestions so that Unipart’s packaging system is more sustainable by considering important aspects in both companies,” said Fathan.
Apart from learning about sustainable packaging development, Hesti admits that through this program he can also learn the differences in work culture in Unipart. According to him, the most striking thing is the systematic work and time management used. “Here the work culture feels more disciplined, especially in time management, all work is done during working hours, beyond that there are no more work-related discussions,” said Hesti.
During the internship, these four students were guided by Prof. Benny Tjahjono as Professor of Sustainability and Supply Chain Management at the Center for Business in Society (CBiS) which is one of the leading research centers in Coventry with extensive industrial networks that allows Indonesian students to get internship opportunities. Not to forget, the students expressed their gratitude to Coventry University for opening the door for internships and getting knowledge directly from the industry, in accordance with the motto “learning in partnership with industry”, and feel very lucky for the opportunity given so they can experience the internship experience. abroad.
This internship program provides an opportunity for students to participate and gain new perspectives in the world of work and foreign industry. With the perspectives and experiences gained, they are expected to be able to inspire other students to contribute to developing industry and entrepreneurial ideas in the country.