Anna Jonsson, systems engineer, is facing constant challenges.
Electrical engineer, somebody sitting in the corner of an office and just calculating and calculating. Or is this the case?
“No, not at all,” says Anna Jonsson and laughs. “My job involves facing constant challenges, many meetings with people from different cultures and the opportunity to work in a wide range of technologies.”
At Power Systems the area in which Anna Jonsson is working just now is FACTS, or reactive power (var) compensation. FACTS involves the engineering and designing of installations intended to increase the transmission capacity of existing power networks and to develop electricity quality solutions for different grid operators.
“I’m working as systems engineer. In other words, I design the systems for electricity quality and more efficient power transmission supplied by ABB. In practice, this means that I make certain that the various components included in the installations meet the customer’s specifications.”
It was in the fall of 2001 that Anna Jonsson joined ABB’s Trainee Program. Among her jobs was working in a department responsible for systems design. Her background includes a master’s degree in electrical engineering with specialization in electrical power systems from Chalmers University of Technology, Gothenburg.
“In fact, I have always intended to work with electrical power in one form or another, but when I was an undergraduate I was not absolutely certain about what to specialize in. On the other hand, I’m not now quite sure either. I’m still finding my way around in the electrical power field. But the education I received has given me a broad base and the opportunity to choose the subject of my specialization at rather a late stage. And I believe this is the be-all and end-all.”
Anna decided in the end to specialize in electrical power engineering and then she knew almost right from the very start which company she wanted to join. “I applied for a place in the Trainee Program. As time went by I realized that that this was absolutely the right choice.”
For the time being Anna still has a lot to learn about the technology. The challenges facing her just now are systems design and more technology-related issues, considers Anna. Sales and marketing are also activities that attract her in the coming years.
“The list of things that I would like to do also includes working abroad, in the U.S. or in South America. I did my degree project work in America and worked in Mexico City as part of my Trainee Program. And if I look a little further ahead, studying for an MBA wouldn’t be all that wrong”.