Internship Reflection

1. GCA Internship: Update Mastery Equipment List and System

This summer I had an internship at an industrial wastewater treatment facility with Gulf
Coast Authority at the Washburn Tunnel along the Houston ship channel. One project that I
headed was a re-systemization of the work order system. The current system was outdated,
redundant, and had many flaws as to equipment accuracy and proper tracking of equipment. My
role was to take inventory of every piece on site and create a new equipment ID that would
better reflect the piece of equipment and its location. I also updated equipment descriptions to
better represent the purpose of the equipment, updated location references to better coincide
with facility maps, and updated P&ID maps to accurately reflect current equipment and flow
routes on site. I completed all of this through a Microsoft Excel sheet that contained all original
and updated information, you were able to sort by location, job, description, P&ID, and other
identifying characteristics so when an IT employee creates the new system, workers will be able
to find equipment, place work orders, and input new/remove retired equipment in a much easier
and efficient fashion. I also created a road map that gives a step by step process on inputting
new equipment. Now future employees will have a method to follow and the system can be
maintained over time, as well as our steps can be traced and we have an answer to why we
created the system the way it is.
When I was introduced to this project there were not any requirements or prerequisites
besides seeking an environmental degree when I obtained the internship. I was taught more
information in regards to P&IDs and basic engineering information needed for a background to
help me locate and verify equipment and its usages. I honestly was nervous and felt unprepared
when they introduced me to the project and told me that I would be in charge of the logistics and
details of the project. I was initially supposed to work on the project with another intern, but they
ended up not continuing with them so I was the sole person on the task with the aid of the
Facility Manager. The project wasn’t the most “fun” or glamorous, but I still learned a lot more
about the actual water treatment process and was able to see the field from a variety of
perspectives. This project pushed me outside of my comfort zone, having to reach out to a
variety of employees on many different levels from hands on work with electricians and
mechanics, to the facility manager, and reliability coordinator. I was uncomfortable at first and
felt out of place having to reach out to employees my parents age that had an array of
experiences and qualifications, but I quickly learned that it is okay to ask questions and that in
order to become more experienced that I must utilize my resources and dive head first into the
tasks at hand. Through this project I learned how to stay determined and committed even
though the job was monotonous, because what I was doing had purpose and would be of aid to
employees. I also had to be extremely adaptable throughout the project, as what information
was wanted and provided was dynamic and constantly changing, but I combatted this well and
was able to contribute unique and efficient ways to problem solve and add information along the
way to meet the needs of the facility staff. Another huge takeaway from this experience is the
lack of reassurance you may face in the workforce. I would often times feel lost and felt as if I
wasn’t meeting expectations, or just thought things were going a lot more negatively than they
were, but I soon found out that typically if my boss wasn’t hovering over me or constantly
checking in on me, it was because she had confidence in me and my abilities and felt that I was
meeting and even exceeding expectations. In my exit interview over the summer this was one of
the biggest sighs of relief I had ever experienced. Overall this project made me utilize critical
thinking, communication, and organizational skills. I also showcased all of my strengths of
restorer, relator, achiever, arranger, and positivity through a variety of ways as showcased
above.

2. GCA Internship: Hurricane Preparedness Plan

This winter I returned to an internship with Gulf Coast Authority at the Washburn Tunnel
facility located along the Houston ship channel. Hurricane Harvey had hit earlier in the year and
with the new year coming came their annual review and update to the Hurricane Preparedness
Plan. I was given the project to review and update the plan with supervision from the facility
manager as well as converting the document to also have a Microsoft Excel version so that the
plan could better be used as a checklist versus a 100 page document that staff would have to
meticulously go through to find their duties. What I did was systemize the plan by sorting duties
by job titles and locations so that every employee on site could filter the document to their job
and have a detailed list of their responsibilities and the location on site of what they were
responsible for. With Hurricane Harvey, there was little notice and the storm developed into a
dangerous hurricane with less than 48-hours notice. The main lesson that the facility learned
was that the plan was not totally accurate and did not represent when they would perform
activities, as well as how in depth they were able to prepare in these short-notice situations.
The plan is broken down into a series of Phases related to the distance and time before
the storm makes landfall. These Phases are crucial, but a lot of activities were too reactionary
and lead to more stress and a panic on employees, especially operators, mechanics, and
electricians to prepare as much as possible as well as maintain their regular duties. I elected
many activities to be completed in preseason to alleviate stress on staff and through this
proactive preparation. The changes allow as little as possible to be done in later stages and turn
many later duties into checks, versus having to go and fully complete tasks, so that in the case
of hurricanes such as Harvey where there is such little lead time, it is possible to complete all
action items.
Overall, the plan was adjusted to better represent the preventive actions being taken,
and better organized them to transition to proactive preparation. My plan was approved with
flying colors and I exceeded my boss’s expectations. She was especially proud of the checklist
aspect because it simplified the document formatting and made it so much more accessible and
easier to read for employees. I had to be extremely adaptable with change and had to really
focus on being transparent with employees and created a plan that was easy and
understandable for them, while still maintaining the credibility and expectations of my facility
manager. This task was very interesting and I found it extremely relevant so I had more interest
and was more eager throughout the entire project compared to that of the equipment system. I
also was much more familiar with the staff and found it much easier to approach and reach out
to fellow employees to gain information, and an additional perspective. I went into this project
with more confidence in my abilities and knowledge about the information I would be critiquing
as well as with a better familiarity of my role and expectations. This helped me to complete a
complete and efficient product that I hold pride in. Also, this task was a representation of an
emergency response plan and I am amazed at how this project directly relates to some of the
coursework that I am currently completing. The Hurricane Preparedness Plan overall highlighted
my strengths especially that of being a restorator, arranger, and relator and made me utilize my
problem solving, adaptability, and organizational skills to create a tangible product.

3. GCA Internship: TPDES Permit Renewal Application

This winter while at my internship with Gulf Coast Authority, my final project was to assist
in the TPDES Permit Renewal application.The Texas Pollutant Discharge Elimination System
(TPDES) permit regulates and monitors pollutant discharge into surface waters. Working at a
water treatment facility, this permit is one of the foundations to their work and is vital for them to
stay compliant. It is time to renew their permit and the application has an in depth sampling
section that I would specifically focus on. There are copious amounts of chemicals and
pollutants that must be sampled in a variety of ways, and in varying amounts. I was assigned to
create a system that tracks all of the samples needed, the methods in which to collect the
samples, and the frequency in which they are needed. There were so many chemicals and so
little that our facility routinely monitors so I needed to prepare a list of the chemicals that we
would need to additionally test and how we would test them, as well as if we needed to find and
send them to a third party lab to meet the applications’ standards. This system was multifaceted
and was the most intricate that I had ever made and definitely the most important. I was first
honored to be given the opportunity to work hands on with the compliance coordinator and to be
an asset to her, but I was also overwhelmed and intimidated by the task. The facility manager
and compliance coordinator didn’t give me too much direction and just wanted me to create
something containing all of the application information and that worked in a way to find certain
chemicals such as those that we would have to request for extra samples to be taken. This way
we would have all of the necessary samples by the time we are ready to analyze data and
submit the application. I created a system that contained all necessary information and that was
logical and efficient. I created a guide on how to use the sheets and how to filter in order to find
certain information, so that once I went back to class in the spring they would still be able to use
the system and its data. I also provided information regarding lessons that our sister facility
learned through their permit renewal the previous year. I had contacted the other office and
found out what they struggled with, how they completed certain tasks that seemed daunting and
complicated, and found out their timeline to make sure that our timeline was adequate enough
to ensure that we would have all of the necessary data in time. I presented and explained the
system to the facility manager and compliance coordinator and they quickly caught on and were
able to adequately navigate it. I was proud that I was able to create a product that was so
complex, yet so easy to work with.
I had to exemplify great patience through entering all of the information and finding a
way to systemize it and had great focus and determination on this product. It really tested my
problem solving abilities and pushed me to think in ways I hadn’t before. I was surprised by how
often I had to use what I learned in organic chemistry to identify different names for compounds,
and all of the varying sampling methods that they would use. I had to be very transparent with
this process and had to be extremely adaptable throughout the process to make sure that
others could use the system and to make sure that the guide was clear and easy to follow so
that others in the future could also utilize this system. We were constantly adding more
information to the sheets and constantly looking to see if we could extend the purpose of system
so I was always keeping an open mind and staying positive and focused throughout and making
sure that I was result driven and would be proud of what I was creating. I utilized all of my
strengths during this project from keeping an open mindset, to being a flexible arranger and
staying organized. Overall this project pushed me to be on my toes as well as made me
significantly more aware about what exactly the compliance field entails. Because I enjoyed this
project so much, it has given me more of a focus on my career path and I hope to continue to
work on more compliance work to gain more experience.