140. Hero - Mayuri Dahibhate, MES Engineer at E-Technologies Group

Mayuri: 00:00 

So being a hundred percent productive is what I aim at. Some days, of course, are not a hundred percent productive, but just getting up in the morning and knowing that I'm going to have a productive day, I'm going to help someone I'm going to help myself is what I would say my personal why is. And again, I've seen my mom and my dad do it all their life. That just keeps me driven all the time because I just want to achieve at least 50% of what they have achieved. 

Chris: 00:30 

Welcome to EECO Asks Why a podcast that dives into industrial manufacturing topics, spotlights the heroes that keep America running. I'm your host, Chris Grainger. And on this podcast, we do not cover the latest features and benefits on products that come to market, instead, we focus on advice and insight from the top minds of industry because people and ideas will be how America remains number one in manufacturing in the world. 

Welcome to EECO Asks Why. Today we have a hero episode. I'm very excited to have with me, Mayuri Dahibhate and she is the MES Engineer at E-Technologies Group. So welcome Mayuri. 

Mayuri: 01:15 

Hey Chris. Hi, how are you? 

Chris: 01:16 

Good. How are you doing? 

Mayuri: 01:18 

I'm good. Thank you. Thanks a lot for the opportunity for this. I feel elated. 

Chris: 01:23 

I'm excited to have you now, where exactly are you located out of it?

Mayuri: 01:27 

So I am currently located in Toronto, Canada. 

Chris: 01:31 

All right. Toronto, I've never been there and I got to go there someday. A big uh, big hockey city, huh? 

Mayuri: 01:37 

Yes, definitely. 

Chris: 01:40 

Well, we love these conversations, Mayuri, and we get to talk to our heroes and you're definitely one of them. So maybe get us started. Tell us a little bit about your journey to where you're at now. 

Mayuri: 01:50 

So I was born and raised in India. There's a city called Pune in India. So many people know Mumbai. It's a couple of hours drive from there. And I completed all of my education in my home city. And I, once I graduated from college I joined this company called Tata Consultancy services.

And I was with them for about six years. Started off my career. That's when I got a chance to move from India to the United States. I was in the United States for about six and a half years. I used to live in Cincinnati, Ohio. And then recently my husband got a transfer, so I requested for transfer.

And then here we are in Toronto. In between I worked for six years with TCS. And then I moved on to my current company E-Technologies Group. And I have been with them for about it would be five years, this year. Yes. It will be five years with the company.

And I have been an MEF engineer throughout but definitely moving from a level one MES engineer to an MES consultant, which I am right now. It's kind of a techno-functional role MES engineer. 

Chris: 02:58 

Yeah. And so E-Technologies Group. What exactly do you guys do at the end of the day? 

Mayuri: 03:04

So E-Technologies Group is a system integrator. The main work that E-Technologies Group does is providing a system integration software to the shop floor to all the sites that use different industrial automation solutions. And then MES is also a part of those solutions that E-Technologies Group provides. And that's where my role comes into play. 

Chris: 03:27 

Very cool. Now you've been serving the industry in a lot of different ways. I am curious from your standpoint as the MES engineer, what are some of the challenges that you're seeing out there right now that are the biggest that's impacting the industry in general?

Mayuri: 03:42 

Now that I see the biggest challenge to the industry right now is data security. You are all moving to cloud-based system. Everything, every data, everything about you, about your company, about whatever you do or whatever happens, even at the industrial level, everything is stored on the cloud. And the biggest challenge is data security.

So if there is any breach, all of that information is going to someone that shouldn't have that information. So I think that's one of the biggest challenges right now to the industry. 

Chris: 04:17 

No doubt. We're hearing that across the board aren't we? All of these different types of companies, industrial companies being targeted, the impact that it's having. And we live in the Southeast and gas pipeline, when that got impacted, from a data security standpoint, you know, I couldn't get gas for a few days. That really impacted me personally. 

Mayuri: 04:36 

Yeah. It impacts everyone, like I said, even down to the individual level, it impacts everyone.

Chris: 04:43

We love these hero conversations because they give people inspiration, and it gives them a different thought on a path they could take. So maybe speak to the young person out there or the person that wants to make a career shift. Maybe they want to go down this MES engineer path.

What advice would you give them? 

Mayuri: 05:02 

So I would say never stop learning because all the technologies keep evolving. So you have to be, you have to evolve and adapt to those new technologies. So just keep learning, get some certifications for the new technologies in the market, or just, you know, connect with your colleagues or new technologies or emerging trends that they're working on and try to get some more insight. Just try to be in the know. 

Chris: 05:31 

Great advice if you, because once you stop learning you're not moving forward to that point. 

Mayuri: 05:36 

Right. Yeah. Just, get out of your comfort zone and especially with everything that's happening right now, moving on to cloud mobility, it's so much one can get easily overwhelmed but just, being in the know would just keep everything streamlined.

Chris: 05:52 

No doubt. No doubt. Now I am curious throughout your career, have you had people that have been able to mentor you, have you had a chance to mentor others? Just like to give you that opportunity to talk about mentors in general and how that's impacted you. 

Mayuri: 06:07 

For me personally, I would say my biggest mentor is my dad. My dad is also a part-time career counselor, so he does help a lot of people decide what they want to do in their career path. And I have seen him doing that since I was a kid. He has been my biggest driving force to just keep learning all the time. And I've seen him learning even through the age of 60.

So. he's been a big inspiration for me. Definitely one of the first mentors I would say I had in my knife. And then when I moved to E-Technologies Group I got two really great mentors. So Alan Maxwell and Ralph Dixon who have been my managers over the last five years.

And the way they gave me the flexibility to learn and apply whatever I'm learning throughout my career has really made me a more confident person. I don't think if I was that confident, I would be able to say what I'm saying today in front of the camera. That really has helped me in overall, using my skills to next level, even to get more business from the customer. I'd like to thank them. 

Chris: 07:18 

Hey that's wonderful. Just the fact that you have a couple of people at your current company that are willing to invest time in you and to really help you and your career and advance that's outstanding. 

Mayuri: 07:29 

Yeah. And when you mentioned about the experience of being a mentor yes, I have had that experience a couple of times, so I don't know if I still am at that level that I could be someone's mentor.

But I have coached a few people, especially with MES, getting them up to speed, what MES is, how they can utilize MES. So I've had a few learning sessions conducted, so I hope I can take this journey to a point that I can actually mentor someone and make a difference in their lives.

Chris: 08:01 

Oh, you are. You're doing it right now. You're making an impact for sure. And if some people to Mayuri, when they think about, MES or engineering in general they have this mindset, right? And it's not always correct. So if there's, is there anything that you'd like to debunk around what you do and where people may think it's down this path, it's, this is not reality, here's what reality is. So giving you a platform right here, anything you'd like to jump on here? 

Mayuri: 08:27 

I think that the biggest myth that I would like to debunk is you learn everything in college in engineering, you learn everything, you learn all the skills and you're good to go and, you know, start earning. That's the biggest myth and I have experienced it.

So whatever you learn in college definitely helps you improve your analytical skills, your thinking capability and to apply those technologies or whatever skills you've learned in college. I would say that whatever you learn in college, you apply that when you're on your career path, but even during your career path, you need to keep learning and evolving.

So it just the learning and getting those skills doesn't stop when you graduate. It just starts at that point, I feel so I would just say, keep an open mind when you're on your career path. Just look out for what you're interested in, or just look out for where you can grow and just, have that will to learn.

Chris: 09:24 

Yeah, for sure. Now I'm curious when you're the happiest at work and things are going and you're you come home happy and you just have that, "I had a really good day." What were you doing that day? When do you get that fulfillment? 

Mayuri: 09:40 

I get that fulfillment when I know that the work assigned to me has been completed a hundred percent to the satisfaction level that I have set it to so that I just know that I have given my 105% in completing that at least from my end.

And also when you know, your work gets appreciated or it gets identified that it has helped someone in the long run, like for example, there could be production issues at the site. And people come running asking for help because they know that if that issue doesn't get resolved, it's just going to cost a lot of dollars in the long run.

And if I hit them and that issue gets resolved and the smile that I see on their faces, that just makes my day. So I just know that I've had someone and it has really impacted someone's life. So that just makes me very happy. 

Chris: 10:32 

No doubt. Now we've had a fun time getting to know you at work. Now let's, talk about you outside of work Mayuri. So what are some hobbies that you have? What do you enjoy doing for fun? 

Mayuri: 10:43 

So growing up, I was a very artistic person. So I've had a whole lot of hobbies over my entire lifetime, but currently, the one that I'm sticking to is blogging.

So I like to blog. I like journaling. I like writing. So I do have a travel blog that I write just share, share on my travel, my experiences. Then I also have a home decor blog, where I just share what I do, decorating my home and stuff. That occupies the other part of my day when I'm not working. And this really helps me destress and relax. 

Chris: 11:20 

Now is that maybe we can, you can share that blog link with us and we can let our listeners check it out. 

Mayuri: 11:27 

Yeah. Sure. I will. 

Chris: 11:29 

Awesome. So you like blogging, you like doing some traveling. How about family? What would you like to share with us about your family?

Mayuri: 11:36 

So, like I said, I was born and brought up in India, so my family is back home in India. My parents, my brother and my sister-in-law and my nephew. They're back home in India, but I'm married. And me and my husband, we both stay here in Toronto. So. I have one brother like I mentioned and I have a six-year-old nephew who my, I terribly miss because I haven't seen him in a while.

Yeah. So that's, and then my in-laws are they also stay in India, so I just get to meet them probably once a year, but it has been longer this time due to COVID. So I just hope I get to meet them. 

Chris: 12:12 

So I was going to ask you how often do you get to go home? 

Mayuri: 12:15 

I try to go every year, but I haven't been, so it's been two years that I wasn't able to go due to COVID. I'm hoping things improve this year and I get to see them again. They did visit us in the US when we were in the US at least I'm glad that they could visit it at that time because I wasn't able to go and visit them.

Chris: 12:35 

So are there any podcasts out there or YouTube channels, books? What do you enjoy consuming that you think people may enjoy themselves in could stuff for just personal or professional? All across the board. Anything jump out? 

Mayuri: 12:48 

Yeah, so I love reading. That's one of the things that I try to make time for. I love reading books, especially self-help books. So some of the self-help books that I've read in the past are, Ikigai: The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life. That was a really good book. It just tells you how to be grateful for the life you have and how to stay happy. And then there's another book called, Good Vibes, Good Life by Vex King. That's another feel-good book just tells you how to be grateful in life, how to live your life and just aim for more.

And then there's another book, The Magic of Thinking Big by David Schwartz. So that's one of the books that really has impacted how you should think in a direction in which you can achieve the dreams that you've set, your goal, that some of the books I would recommend reading. 

Chris: 13:40 Very cool. And we'll put links to those books in our show notes for our listeners as well. So thank you for sharing those. And we've we started doing a lightning round where we just have a bunch of random silly questions and it just lets our listeners get to know you. So you willing to play Mayuri? 

Mayuri: 13:56 Yeah. Sure. 

Chris: 13:57 All right. Let's jump in and so what's your favorite food?

Mayuri: 13:59 Indian,

Chris: 14:00 Indian food. How about adult beverage? 

Mayuri: 14:02 Sangria, 

Chris: 14:03 Sangria. All right. So what's on your nightstand right now? 

Mayuri: 14:07 My skincare products.

Chris: 14:11 What's an app you can't live without?

Mayuri: 14:14 Instagram.

Chris: 14:15 Instagram. Oh, okay. Okay. We'll have to put your Instagram link there in our show notes so people can follow you. 

Mayuri: 14:23 That's where I do most of my travel blogging. 

Chris: 14:26 Okay. Very cool. Very cool. How about a guilty pleasure? 

Mayuri: 14:29 Hmm. Indulging in fried food. 

Chris: 14:32 Yes. Yes. How about all-time favorite movie? 

Mayuri: 14:36 That's a difficult one. I don't even remember which movie I watched last. 

Chris: 14:40 We'll move. We can move on. How about favorite music? 

Mayuri: 14:46 I used to love rock when I was in college, but now I'm more into pop and definitely Bollywood music, Indian music. 

Chris: 14:56 Okay. Where is somewhere that you've never been, but you got to go one day?

Mayuri: 15:00 Bora Bora. 

Chris: 15:02 Okay. Now, where is the most outstanding place that you have been?

Mayuri: 15:07 Hawaii. 

Chris: 15:08 Oh, which island? 

Mayuri: 15:09 Maui and Oahu both, but I need to go to the other two. The big island. 

Chris: 15:16 

For sure. Yep. I've only been to Maui but got to go back.  

Mayuri: 15:21 

We just went there recently. That was a really amazing trip where there was tons of things to do and, everyone has something to do with their, 

Chris: 15:30 

Did you see the sunrise at the top of the volcano?

Mayuri: 15:34 

Yep! Haleakala. 

Chris: 15:35 

Yeah. It's pretty amazing. Pretty amazing. Huh? Last one dogs or cats?

Mayuri: 15:42 

Dogs. 

Chris: 15:43 

All right. You got it right. You got it. Right. Well, that was a fun lightning round. You know, we call it EECO Asks Why. We always wrap up with the why. So if somebody was to walk up to you, Mayuri, and wants to know what your personal why is, what would that be?

Mayuri: 16:00 

So being a hundred percent productive is what I aim at. Some days, of course are not a hundred percent productive, but just getting up in the morning and knowing that I'm going to have a productive day, I'm going to help someone I'm going to help myself, just makes me happy, even if it means just de-cluttering a closet or just cleaning something. It just gives me that peace of mind that I've done something productive. So I just cannot sit and mindlessly, I do that sometimes. I am guilty of doing that, just mindlessly scrolling and not doing anything, but I've tried to avoid things like that.

So just being driven and being a hundred percent productive is what I would say my personal why is. And again, like I said, I've seen my mom and my dad do it all their life. My mom was a working mother with two kids and now I just cannot imagine I can feel it now, how she used to feel back then handling everything, handling work, handling household chores, children.

So is this, you know, I can relate to those things. That just keeps me driven all the time, because I just want to achieve at least 50% of what they have achieved. 

Chris: 17:17 

Well, you definitely will. And this has been just a wonderful conversation, getting to know you one of our heroes and if our listeners out there, check out the show notes, for sure. Definitely now that we know her blogs on Instagram, got to see where Mayuri is traveling, but thank you so much for taking the time with us on EECO Asks Why. I really enjoyed the time with you today. 

Mayuri: 17:38 

Yep. Thank you so much for this opportunity. I enjoyed it too. And it was a great conversation.

Chris: 17:44 

Thank you. And I hope you have a great day. 

Mayuri: 17:47

Thank you. You too. Have a great day.

Chris: 17:49

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