College of Informatics and Electronics
Gordon Buckle
BTech
We live in the information society where lap-tops, mobiles and the web are part of our everyday lives. Gordon Buckle is part of this IT revolution, applying electronics expertise to his work with Motorola.
Gordon spent his eight-month Cooperative Education period with Sensormatic Electronics in Cork, which produces sensor security devices for the clothing retail business. While on Cooperative Education, Gordon worked as a Quality Engineer with specific responsibility for ensuring their suppliers met the highest standards. Gordon says his Cooperative Education experience provided him with the knowledge of how a company operates, and took him from being a theoretical student to a person who began to understand and apply knowledge in a manufacturing environment. His experience while on placement, combined with his final year project, were responsible for his job offer from Motorola in Swords, Co Dublin, a large U.S. multinational involved in the mass production of mobile telephones.
Gordon was appointed as a Vendor Engineer with Motorola. Within three years of joining he was promoted to a management position as team leader for the vendor-engineering group who controlled the quality and supply of incoming components. Today, he is responsible for ensuring that there is technical support available to deal with vendor related issues, for example problem resolution, audits and vendor development. Gordon's position of responsibility allows him to combine his engineering knowledge with managerial skills. Because he has to co-ordinate a range of activities, much of his time is spent communicating with members of his team, with other team leaders and Motorola's supply- base. It's largely a question of making sure the right people are doing the right tasks and having the support and information they need. According to Gordon, "The best part of my job is interacting with a global supply base and as a result global travel".
"My degree course at UL equipped me with tools I need to function in my job, where I am exposed on a daily basis to the areas I studied, from semiconductor manufacturing to surface mount assembly and die-casting. This means I get a chance to apply my knowledge and experience to help resolve materials related issues".