GIM Robotics had a class of Upper Secondary School students visiting on the 18th of January 2023, welcomed with open arms by Head of People Isabella Oksama. GIM employees (often called GIMSters) held presentations in the auditorium on what we do, the technology behind our products, and most importantly, their background. The idea behind the visit was to show the students on the brink of pursuing a higher education what kind of work is out there and help them bridge the gap between classroom learning and the actual work. The students were a mix of first, second, and third-year students specializing in mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, and geography.

One does not become a GIMster only through a particular education or path. Many of the GIMsters have fallen into the path of robotics through the most unusual tracks. The main point in becoming a GIMster is to have a passion for the work we do, e.g. robotics! This is also what the GIMsters pointed out many times in their presentations as well.

Our CEO Pertti Lukkari introduced his story to when he was a young boy and saw the walking forest machine moving in the terrain with hydraulic legs. Little did he know then that the person involved with the invention of that machine, Aarne Halme, would also be the co-founder and board member of the company he would be CEO at. Pertti has now the challenging job of taking GIM Robotics into the next chapter of its life and he encouraged everyone to do what they want to, not what someone else says that they should do.

The company history and current profile were given by co-founder and CTO José Peralta focusing on videos showing our products in use and some key figures. José has a long history in robotics engineering, as well as practical hands-on experience in the field, developing GIM capabilities from a very early point.

Lead Robotics Engineer Juhana Ahtiainen explained the overarching principle on how GIM software breaks down and solves mobile robotics problems. He also provided a view into what kinds of mathematics are used. Juhana urged the students to take a semester abroad as well if it is possible, since his internship at the University of Sydney was solidifying his career choice.

Senior Robotics Engineer Aleksi Turunen got the student's attention when whipping out a self-made robot blasting some music and dodging obstacles in its way. "Quadrifoglio", as he has named it, is a pet project before his time at the company and might have had some influence in getting to work for GIM Robotics. Aleksi's road to robotics was mostly through his own projects and the constant need for more information, alongside his Mechanical Engineering degrees.

Breaking the stereotype of robotics being only for men was crushed when our Robotics Engineer Sonia Greco introduced her journey to GIM Robotics through software engineering and gave the female students some encouraging words on pursuing their dreams, whatever they might be.

When the official part was over, the group moved outside where there was of course a demonstration of how our technology works in practice. The SPO3 - Speedster mapped the area using LiDAR and the same GIM software discussed before, after which the robot could autonomously repeat trajectories taught to within the area. Juhana Ahtiainen explained what was happening and showed the students as well that the bumper prevents it from driving into anything and standing in front of the previously mapped path. The robot stopped and waited for the path to be clear before continuing.

Other students commented that they enjoyed the most to hear about the technology behind the robots and the GIMster stories. The feedback showed us that there was maybe one future robotics engineer among them already and that the path to any job is not always linear. We hope that we gave the students some encouraging words and bridged the gap between theoretical learning and practical work. 

Who knows, maybe one of them is a future GIMster as well?

For more insight into GIM Robotics world and career stories, please visit our Blog posts - site.