Bij Philips werken we iedere dag aan betere zorg voor meer mensen. Zo ook Nese Arslan: zij werkt als technician en tester in de MRI-fabriek van Philips in Best. Eindhovens Dagblad sprak met haar over haar loopbaan én haar nominatie voor de Noordhofprijs. 

Elk jaar iets nieuws

Nese Arslan werkt al sinds de jaren negentig bij Philips, waar ze begon in de beeldbuizenfabriek. Ze kreeg de kans om een tweejarige BBL-opleiding te volgen in de mechatronica. Daarover raakte ze niet uitgeleerd; zo leerde ze solderen en spijkerde ze haar talenkennis bij om anderen te helpen: "Ik ben ook mentor voor nieuwe medewerkers. Die spreken steeds vaker Engels en dus vond ik dat ik dat ook moest leren." Omdat Arslan tot bijna haar 18e verjaardag in Turkije woonde, is Engels haar derde taal. "Elk jaar moet ik van mijzelf iets nieuws leren, dan voel ik me goed", zegt ze. "Hoe meer je weet over de dingen waar je mee bezig bent in je werk, hoe zekerder je wordt." 

Innovatie voor betere zorg

Nese soldeert en monteert onderdelen aan de bodycoils, onderdelen van de MRI-scanner die helpen om signalen vanuit het lichaam op te vangen en te verzenden. Die signalen worden gebruikt om gedetailleerde beelden te maken van organen, spieren, en andere weefsels in het lichaam. Voor Nese is het mooiste aan haar werk bij Philips dat ze bijdraagt aan de gezondheid van mensen. "Mijn handen werken letterlijk aan iets dat helpt in de diagnose en behandeling van mensen, het redden van levens,” voegt ze toe.

At Philips, we work every day to improve healthcare for more people. So does Nese Arslan, who works as a technician and tester at Philips’ MRI factory in Best, the Netherlands. She spoke with Eindhovens Dagblad about her career and her nomination for the Noordhof Award.

Something new every year

Nese Arslan has been working at Philips since the 1990s, where she started in the picture tube factory. She was given the opportunity to follow a two-year work-and-study program in mechatronics. That didn’t stop her eagerness to learn: she went on to master soldering and improve her language skills to better support others. “I’m also a mentor for new employees. More and more of them speak English, so I felt I needed to learn it too,” she says.

Because Arslan lived in Turkey until just before her 18th birthday, English is her third language. “Every year I have to learn something new — that’s what makes me feel good,” she says. “The more you understand about the things you work with, the more confident you become.”

Innovation for better care

Nese solders and assembles components for body coils - parts of the MRI scanner that help capture and transmit signals from the body. These signals are used to create detailed images of organs, muscles, and other tissues. For Nese, the best part of her work at Philips is contributing to people’s health. “My hands literally work on something that helps diagnose and treat people - even save lives,” she adds.

A chance at an award

Nese’s talent and dedication have not gone unnoticed: they earned her a nomination for the Noordhof Award in the mechatronics category. The Noordhof Award honors skilled professionals in the Brainport region.

In her team, Nese works alongside several other women, but overall, women remain underrepresented in the technical sector. Nese hopes to inspire more women to enter her field — and she has ideas on how to make that happen: “Maybe women who are currently out of work could be offered a technical education. It’s not something you’d easily think of yourself if you don’t have that background. A work-and-study program would be ideal because you can start working and earning an income while studying. And I’m sure that if they start working here, they’ll quickly learn to love it.” Philips helps promote such opportunities through its employment programs.

This year, Nese was the only woman nominated for the award. Although someone else took home the prize, Philips is extremely proud of Nese, and of Ostap Bachynskyy, a mechatronics student at Philips, who was also nominated this year, and congratulates the winners.

Read the full interview (in Dutch) in Eindhovens Dagblad, Algemeen Dagblad or Brabants Dagblad.