Sorion brings cheer ahead of auto industry summit is a small article which appeared in the Birmingham Post on Monday 2nd February 2009, a time when businesses such as Honda have just stopped production for 4 months due to the downturn.

Also in the news;
Birmingham engineering firm Sorion wins £400,000 deal.

Newpaper Article

Promising times ahead then hopefully.

Reviews of 2008… I think I will just leave that one for my memories, not a productive year at all.

2009 however, lets start optimistic!
Within the next 2 months we will be seeing the final fall of Weberrific as neither of us (Dean and I) have the commitments anymore. I do still intend to keep the site(s) alive and maybe, just maybe actually develop a few… Looking at it, I have nickwilkes.co.uk, where-local.co.uk, redditch4x4.co.uk, wilkesphotography.co.uk. hmm, what to do! Lets review in 12!

Although work has been difficult, I have full intentions of getting to grips with a few things this year, in particular my timing and motivation. We have a lot of work scheduled for the next few months so that has at least taken the strain off things for a while. With Lamborghini and Bently placing large orders with us it stands a chance that things will be quite challenging and interesting for me. This week has also seen my annual review which went very well I feel with a mutual understanding of where I am and what it is next I need to achieve. It was a little dissapointing to hear no cost of living increases planned for the year but under the current climate I guess it was innevitible… There goes the house buying idea! But none the less, I am now a Software Engineer, no longer Junior… thus meaning I now have to show my worth and develop into a more expanded, professional and self motivated role.

That leaves me with pretty much 2 options to leave us with, save save save… haven’t proved to be any good at it in recent years but this is the year of the save! The other option being inventive and dynamic, with my interest in automation significantly increasing I have all these wacky and wonderful ideas in my head which are probably already out there but the fact they are hard to find suggests that it is either in its infancy, or is just a poor idea… Time to investigate (Watch this space)!

My targets for this year were pretty simple; Finish Uni with a 2:1, get a good job and go to more gigs.

Well, I passed my degree with a disappointing 2:2, but none the less I have passed and got myself a really good job working for Sorion Electronics.

… and of course I had tickets to see My Chemical Romance but pulled out, but have been to see Razorlight, The Filthy Habits and Kaiser Chiefs.

This now means I have new Targets to set for 2008;

Even more gigs;
I have tickets for Scouting for Girls, and intend to find even more gigs to go to as I have really enjoyed myself this year.

3 Peaks Challenge;
I do not set myself challenges and I would like to set myself at least one challenge every year, of which has to be somewhat difficult, enduring, for charity and a way of getting fit. So the aim for 2008 is to prepare for the 3 Peaks Challenge sometime in the near future.

Activities;
I would like to be involved in more activities and maybe find a really good hobby that I can enjoy, things such as Photography, 4×4 Off-Roading, Water Skiing, Snow Boarding really sound interesting to me and I aim to get more involved with as many of them as possible in 2008.

So all in all, hopefully a good year ahead but as usual I am sure it wont go to plan, 2007 has been a challenge for me and I don’t regret a single thing as I have learned so much about every day life, friendships, work, education and more importantly myself. I have had some terrible moments in 2007, to the point of shear despair but I have got through them and rose above the bad moments and ended up enjoying myself.

The biggest thing to happen was a job offer by Intier. I was half expecting it, but it sadly came 2 months too late or 12 months too early.

The offer was Technical Support, on a salary of £28,000.
The prospects of the job could have been outstanding, an ever developing organisation on a global scale. But something didn’t feel right even after all this being offered.
At the point of offer I was a month away from my review and spent many restless nights thinking about it and I regularly changed my mind about which company I wanted to work for.
After a discussion with a couple of Intier employees and a review at Sorion, I opted to stay at Sorion, with the intentions of being able to pick up some skills from some very skilled people within the team. This to me seems far more important as I have always known a little about a lot and my biggest weakness at the moment is the ability to be technical about a subject and there are quite a few people at Sorion who can provide the perfect foot steps for me.

It was very hard turning down an offer that is substantially higher than my current salary, but it isn’t always about money… is it?!?

… only time will tell and it has been the biggest risk I have ever taken I think and probably will be for a long time as it has been a very quiet time for the automotive industry this year, which has obviously affected Sorion.
They have a lot of development in progress that really interests me and I hope they all come a reality as it will be a great experience.

I didn’t fail as I was expecting, but unfortunately I did not get my aimed 2:1 either, in the end I have a 2:2 in Internet Technology BSc (Hons).

Overall happy I think, at least I am not having to redo anything, especially XML and Web services, which I thought I had failed, I got a really low 5, 3 being a fail and 15 being the highest. So some really disappointing results in places, must work harder in life is the outcome of this one.

Things are finally on the mend;

My granddad has moved back home and is stable enough to look after himself. He will never be 100% again, as he has become diabetic with only 15% of his kidneys working so challenging times ahead there. Best wishes to him.

My computer data has pretty much been lost, which I have finally come to accept. But has come at a time when it was required most, as I have no examples of coding work other than my websites, which does not include VB programming.

Sophie and I have finally split, losing most of our contact for a few months maybe. Not what I wanted but it was inevitable. She provided the best friendship I have ever had, so thank you for the great times. There is far more to it than that but I wont bore you!

As always, I had lost contact with many friends through my relationship with Sophie, happens every time with everyone, why!?! But things are on the mend with friendships.

I have been offered a temporary full time position at Sorion , Which is a great opportunity to get the experience much required. Many thanks to them for taking the gamble, I have no intentions of letting them or myself down here.

I am soon to get my bedroom back and my own freedom again. Since I have moved back in from Uni, we have had a student staying with us and my granddad. So I have had little comfort in sleeping.

My University results are due in a couple of weeks and although I am terribly worried about this, I have come to terms with what ever I have is what I have. If I do not get my wanted 2:1, I have at least come out of it knowing far more than I did before, and I think it has helped me understand many importances and concepts that I were unaware of before my final year. Lets hope I can put them into practice.

My car is up for sale, but not one person has contacted me in 3 weeks of it being up for sale. I have no idea why not, as it is averagely priced. Need to get rid so desperately, need a smaller car or a diesel. Not quite decided yet.

I am still awaiting results for my feet problem, was meant to know within two weeks, it has now been three and they have asked me to ask in another week. All I want to do is get back into football without worrying about the pain I have to go through every time, is that too much to ask for!?! I may have to go on antibiotics for 6 months, so it won’t be a quick healing process, god damn!

Still going to be a challenging few months;

I need to get this work opportunity right,

I need to get my confidence back on track and enjoy myself,

I am trying to lose weight, which Sophie was huge inspiration so now go to do it on my own,

I will have to deal with my graduation,

I need to get hobbies that other people may enjoy doing with me, or finding the right people to do them with!!! I have regrettably given up kayaking for the moment.

I desperately need to get over Sophie (think that is going to be most challenging in some ways).

Enough of boring you all, but just felt like I had to let it all out as I haven’t really spoken to anyone about any of this, there is still more to it but to let that out has made me feel somewhat better already.

Thanks all.

It is scary wondering what to write on my CV and covering letter, as I obviously want it to look appealing.

… that reminds me to update my Profile!

If anyone comes across anything web based, drop us a line…
Cheers