NLE12: Diego’s Engineering Journey: From Venezuela to Steam Systems in Argentina and Spain
Show Notes
Jose and Tony interview Diego about his path in engineering and migration. Diego, a
mechanical engineering graduate from Venezuela, moved abroad in 2017, first to Argentina seeking automotive work but joining Spirax Sarco in the steam and heat-transfer industry. He describes working in thermodynamics-driven steam systems across many industries, first as a project coordinator managing turnkey boiler and steam distribution projects from design through installation and commissioning, then later moving to Valencia, Spain. After a year in a fast-paced startup environment, he returned to Spirax Sarco as a field service engineer, troubleshooting boilers, instrumentation, and commissioning onsite with fewer resources and greater customer pressure. He shares a stressful boiler level-control commissioning case ultimately traced to a design sizing issue, and reflects on cultural differences, reinvention, flexibility, resilience, and advice to keep a vision while staying open to unexpected opportunities.
00:00 Meet Diego
00:47 Early Engineering Spark
01:59 Leaving Venezuela
05:03 Landing First Job
06:21 Steam Industry Basics
08:38 Mechanical Skills Applied
10:40 Back to Spain
14:05 Project Manager Life
18:25 Two Countries One Company
20:32 Reinventing Yourself
24:08 Startup Teaser
24:39 Startup Laundry Franchises
27:14 US Expansion and COVID Crash
28:48 Startup Business Model Talk
29:52 Engineering When Things Fail
32:11 Boiler Commissioning Nightmare
35:55 Root Cause Design Sizing
39:22 Career Advice Stay Flexible
41:44 Always Explore Opportunities
42:52 Thanks and Wrap Up
Music credit: DaFuq!?Boom! - YouTube
Show Notes NLE012 - Linkedln
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