Profile
Amrit Phull
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About Me:
I live in Aix-en-Provence in the South of France, but I come from Birmingham. I work as an Application Engineer. I spend a lot of time exploring France, swimming, and crafting. I also play the guitar!
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I was born in Birmingham and grew up there. While I was growing up, I always spent a lot of time swimming with my local swimming club. I also learned to play the classical guitar and the flute. I play in orchestras and bands – at university, I played the bass guitar in lots of theatre bands and at big university concerts. In June 2025, I moved from the UK to France. I’m having the best time exploring this part of the world and going to the beach at the weekend. I’m spending a lot of time learning French and keeping up with all my hobbies. It’s very different living so far away from my family and friends, but I’m glad I decided to try something new!
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My pronouns are:
she/her
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My Work:
I work with big engines that are even taller than me! The engines are used to generate electricity if there is a power cut.
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I work for a company that makes diesel and natural gas engines. Our biggest engines are taller than me! They can be used to generate electricity for important buildings (like hospitals) if there is a power cut. This keeps all the essential equipment running. The engines can also be used to continuously supply electricity if there isn’t a power station nearby. These engines are sold all over the world. I spend time commissioning engines, which means making sure that they run correctly when they are put in a new place for the first time. I answer questions from people who want to use our engines and help them to understand how they work. I also keep all the technical datasheets up-to-date and keep track of upgrades.
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My Typical Day:
I start work at 8am. In France, we walk around the office and say hello to everyone in the morning. I make a cup of tea and start my day by answering lots of questions from customers. I have lunch with my friends and we speak in French (which is still quite difficult for me). My afternoons are never the same – I deal with whatever problems come my way (and there are normally a lot)!
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I get to work at 8am every day. In France, we walk around the office and say hello to everyone in the morning. We shake hands with every single person! I always have a cup of tea to start my day because it reminds me of home. The first thing I have to do is answer questions from our customers. Our engines are sold all over the world, so there are always plenty of emails waiting for me. The questions normally mean that I have to spend time looking through data or making calculations. At lunchtime, we speak in French. I am still learning French at the moment (I have lessons and even get homework!) so this is really good practice for me. In the afternoon, I carry on with calculations and sometimes have to go to the factory to see products in real life. Every single day is different, because people ask new questions and we have new problems to work with. I even get to travel to where customers are installing the engines and see the engine working on site. I finish work at 4pm and sometimes go for a swim in the sea after work.
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What I'd do with the prize money:
I’d love to make some videos to share with schools about lots of different Engineering jobs! As someone at school, its so difficult to imagine how many options there are for what an engineer can be…
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Education:
I went to secondary school at KE VI Camp Hill School for Girls in Birmingham. I did GCSEs and A Levels there. I then went to university in Lancaster and studied Mechatronic Engineering (a mix between Mechanical and Electrical Engineering). I actually applied for Mechanical Engineering, but changed my mind after my first year. Right now, I’m doing French Lessons after school with a lovely teacher called Chantal.
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Qualifications:
In 2016, I did 10 GCSEs in Maths, English Language, English Literature, Biology, Chemistry, Physics, RS, French, Geography, and Music. I also have Grade 8 Classical Guitar, Grade 8 Flute, and Grade 1 Recorder (I’m not really sure why I did this one because I hated the recorder)!
I have one AS Level in Computer Science, and four A Levels in Maths, Further Maths, Physics, and Music. Doing four A Levels was really difficult, but I’m glad I did Music alongside my STEM subjects because it was so much fun!
At Lancaster University, I got a Masters of Engineering in Mechatronic Engineering. It took four years to finish.I also had a Lifeguarding qualification when I was at university (but it has run out now), and have a First Aid qualification.
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Work History:
While I was still at university, I used to tutor GCSE / A Level Maths and Physics.
My first engineering job was a placement year while I was still at university. I worked as a Paint Engineer at the Toyota factory in Derby. We all wore special blue overalls every single day to make sure we didn’t get dust in the paint. I spent time working with the painting robots, trying to improve quality. I also helped to reduce the amount of electricity that the paint booths consume, reducing the CO2 emissions released when building the cars.
After university, I worked for MAHLE Powertrain in Northampton. I worked on projects with petrol engines, diesel engines, EV batteries, hydrogen fuel cells and lots of other new technology used in cars and motorcycles. I then chose to become a Battery Development Engineer. I built prototype battery packs for a three-wheeled motorcycle. I ran the performance testing and even got to set the battery packs on fire to prove that they were safe to go in a vehicle!
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Current Job:
I moved to France in June 2025, where I work for a company called Moteurs Baudouin as an Application Engineer, which means that I look at how we put our engines into the real world and what special changes we have to make. I answer questions from our customers by looking at data and doing calculations. I have to write test reports for engines in the factory, or on customer sites all over the world. If we want to make upgrades to our engines, I look at whether that changes the way the engine behaves and present the information to our customers.
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Employer:
Moteurs Baudouin is over 100 years old and started out as a company that makes engines for boats. In 2017, the company also started making engines for ‘power generation.’ The company has headquarters in China, where one of the factories is based, but also does a lot of work in France (where it was initially founded). At work, there are lots of languages used – people are speaking French, English and Chinese all the time!
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My Interview
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How would you describe yourself in 3 words?
energetic engineering enthusiast
What did you want to be after you left school?
I wanted to work in Formula 1 as an Engineer doing aerodynamics or race strategy!
Were you ever in trouble at school?
Only a few times - I remember our whole class getting PE detention because we hated playing netball in the rain.
If you weren't doing this job, what would you choose instead?
If I could be a different type of engineer, then I’d like to work with high voltage power and improve the energy grid in the UK. If I wasn’t an engineer, I’d like to present a TV show about science for children.
Who is your favourite singer or band?
My favourite band is called RoadClosed and my cousin plays the drums in it!
What's your favourite food?
My grandma's cooking, or pasta, or cheese :)
If you had 3 wishes for yourself what would they be? - be honest!
I wish I was fluent in French and Punjabi! I wish I could teleport back to the UK when I wanted to, so that I can see my family and friends more often. I wish that I could help to solve climate change with my work.
Tell us a joke.
What's an engineer's favourite type of tree? A geometry!
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