34 GEORGIANVIEW 2021 SPRING
CORPORATE GIVING
ALUMNUS CELEBRATES MAGNA INVESTMENT
Abhimanyu Chauhan, class of 2010
"I remember when my plane landed at Toronto's Pearson
International Airport in April 2009 and all I had was a
piece of paper with Georgian's address on it," recalls
Abhimanyu Chauhan, a 2010 graduate of Georgian
College's Mechanical Engineering Technology –
Automotive Manufacturing program. Following a long
flight from Jalandhar, Punjab, India, Abhimanyu's cab
drove him to Georgian's Barrie Campus, and his time as
a student in Canada began.
Abhimanyu's program required intense learning
at times, and included a combination of
theoretical and practical learning
experiences. His final co-op
placement was at Faurecia's
Bradford, Ontario location,
working on a variety of projects
and manufacturing lines.
He recalls one very special
day when he was sitting in
the office, completing a
data collection project for
his manager. Abhimanyu
reminded his manager that
his time with Faurecia was
coming to a close, and his
manager responded with,
"What do you mean, are you
quitting?" "I told him my four-month
placement was ending. With that, my
manager just got up and left the room,
and I sat there wondering, did I say something
wrong or maybe I was rude?" Within a half hour, his
manager returned to the office and placed a job offer
on the table in front of him, inviting him to begin working
as a full-time maintenance engineer with Faurecia the
following week.
"Georgian teaches you how to show your worth when you
enter the workforce," says Abhimanyu. "I began my first
day of employment on what would have been the last
day of my co-op because of everything that Georgian did
to prepare me for the real world."
In 2015, Abhimanyu was hired by Magna International as
a Process Engineer at their Formet Industries plant in
St. Thomas, Ontario. Today, he is working as a Project
Lead with the company on a new process equipment
launch.
"I see so many similarities between Georgian and Magna,"
he says. "Both of these institutions set their people up for
success, and create an environment that makes us want to
do the very best that we can."
In November 2020, Magna International announced a
$1-million investment in Georgian to help bridge the
skills gap, drive change in the field of mechatronics, and
prepare students for industry 4.0 opportunities.
"I was so proud when I learned that Magna was making
this investment," recalls Abhimanyu. "I had read about
companies making donations to schools before,
but it's a very different experience when it
is your employer investing into your
college. To have two organizations
that I'm so passionate about
coming together like this is
just so wonderful."
The five-year, multi-faceted
agreement will lead to the
creation of a new, state-
of-the-art facility and new
scholarship opportunities
for both future and current
Georgian students. The
partnership also includes
exploration of innovative
research and development
opportunities, programming
around co-op and post-graduate
employment, and exciting new
collaborations in the area of corporate
training and recruitment.
A major part of the investment will be the new Magna
Mechatronics Lab. When complete, this innovative
space will be home to students in a variety of programs,
particularly those in the new Electromechanical
Engineering Technology – Mechatronics three-year
advanced diploma program.
"The way we can stay ahead in a competitive and
constantly changing world is to plan and invest in
the future," says Magna Chief Human Resources
Officer Aaron McCarthy. "At Magna we're committed
to providing students and working people with
opportunities to further their education, gain new skills,
and bring out the best in themselves. This is a core part of
the Magna culture and we're grateful for the opportunity
to partner with Georgian College."
Abhimanyu couldn't agree more.
