The goal for my project was to investigate three aspects of the integration of power electronics (PE) for new product developments in the field of electrical power distribution and regulation systems:
1. Power electronics are based on semiconductor components which require scale to be manufactured economically. Which level of vertical integration for specific PE-based products would make economic and strategic sense?
2. The technology shift from electro-mechanical devices towards power electronics may impose the risk of cannibalization of certain own products and may overlap with offerings of current customers and might increase the dependencies from suppliers. What are possible scenarios and how should the business navigate them?
3. PE-based systems will be affected by different failure modes than electro-mechanical devices. Which are those failure modes and how can the risk of a system failure originating from PE-components be identified and evaluated early in project based business? Also, is it possible to assess the impact of the PE-components on the reliability of the entire system?
I once again I have realized, that no matter the size of the company the result of my work is highly dependent on how much and which support I get from the stakeholders within the company. If the project does not have a high priority among decision makers, it will be very difficult to get the necessary support and resources required to deliver impactful results. Hence, it was critical to understand the priority of the project and invest time early to secure the necessary support for the success of the internship. Having had no previous experience with power electronics, I also learned that the matter is quite challenging and that it requires some good effort to understand the technology to the extent necessary to be able to conduct meaningful discussions with subject matter experts.
My experience working at MR in Regensburg has been both challenging and rewarding. I had the opportunity to dive in a completely new technical field and work together with very knowledgeable colleagues. During the last six months I could substantially broaden my knowledge about power transmission, distribution and regulation which complements my previous knowledge from the wind industry in a great way. I am looking forward to sharing my experience with MR with the MIT Leaders for Global Operations community.