Sean Ng (MCKL CAL1501) is currently a Lead Product Demonstration Designer (Creative Technologist) in the Global Retail Experience & Events team at Dyson in Malmsbury, UK. He studied Mechanical Engineering at the University of Southampton and went on to work as a Design Engineer at Dyson, designing headphones and purifier fans. After 3 years in engineering, he decided to make the switch to a more marketing focused role.
At MCKL, Sean was part of the Editorial Board and Engineering Club. He also co-founded Ocrux Studios, a film production studio. Partnering with other MCKL friends, their film ‘That Perfect Picture’ was shortlisted for the Young Filmmakers Award in the international My RODE Reel 2015 film competition.
Memories at MCKL
“Auntie, one ham & egg toast with ketchup please!” I recall myself frequently ordering at the MCKL canteen in between lectures. It has been 8 years since I last stepped out of MCKL but the poignant memories and lifelong friendships persist. I came to MCKL to study A Level in 2015 with a few of my friends from high school. Most of us were split up into the various subject groups, as I opted to take Further Maths. Oh, Further Maths! I still remember failing my first Further Math test and feeling a little upset about it. With its strong academic track record of producing world-leading A Level result, MCKL has a habit of making you feel quite self-conscious as you are surrounded by some of the brightest students in Malaysia. This peer-pressure really drives you to do your best and there is no time to feel sorry for yourself. I must say I ended up getting an A for Further Maths in the A Level (thanks Ms. Lim!).
At the same time, they say all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy, so outside of lectures, I was quite active in my film production company, Ocrux Studios, which I co-founded with a few friends, some of them from MCKL. We produced a short film That Perfect Picture, which was filmed in and around MCKL and Brickfields, and it got shortlisted for the Young Filmmakers Award in the international My RODE Reel film competition.
Life after MCKL
After A Level, I enrolled in the University of Southampton to do a 4-year integrated master’s course in Mechanical Engineering. I spent the first 2 years in our Malaysia campus in Iskandar Puteri, Johor where I lived with 2 of my MCKL friends who also had the same idea. My final 2 years were in the very green and much larger Southampton campus in the south of England. It was quite eye-opening experiencing the contrast of both worlds, from late night mamak sessions in Johor to enjoying a cheap pint in a Wetherspoons pub.
In my penultimate year, I clinched a summer internship at Dyson in the User Experience Design Engineering team. Set against the backdrop of the picturesque English countryside, their Malmesbury site was a sprawling campus of technological innovation and research, with some of the brightest engineers from around the world. It was ‘Disneyland’ for engineers with the sheer number of labs and prototyping facilities available. After completing my internship, I was offered the opportunity to return as a graduate the following year, which I gladly accepted.
After graduating, I spent my next 3 years as a Design Engineer at Dyson where I worked across 5 different projects, mostly in mechanical design of parts but also in airflow and filtration performance investigations and test methodology. I was responsible for managing the global drop robustness investigations for the Dyson Zone, our first wearable air-purifying headphones, which also meant I got to drop and break our first working prototypes to see what parts would break and require strengthening. Some of the more unusual things I worked on involved helping our Marketing & Film team design pyrotechnic coloured smoke tests for a TV commercial and building a 10-metre-long smoke chamber for a second TV commercial.
I suppose this sparked my interest in all things marketing-related so when the position was advertised last year, I immediately applied for the role of Lead Product Demonstration Designer in our Global Retail Experience and Events team. I am currently responsible for designing and managing interactive physical and digital experiences which help demonstrate our technology within retail and event spaces. In the recently launched Dyson Ontrac headphones, I developed a digital experience which allows shoppers to listen to the enhanced frequency range of the headphones in-store.
Words of Advice
As I toast the bread for my ham and egg toastie in my kitchen at home in Bristol, I look back on my 8-year journey. I do not think I have any regrets as I am the type of person to always grab every opportunity which comes my way. One of the key pieces of advice I have received, and I always give, is to always ask for something if you want it, because you do not get what you do not ask for. As someone who grew up in Malaysia with an Asian upbringing, I used to think the best thing to do is to quietly do your best, not challenge the status quo and be humble about one’s achievements. However, I have found that sometimes it is also important to be vocal about your opinions and your achievements, i.e. to be heard and be visible, especially when it comes to career progression. I hope this short glimpse of my journey helps inspire you in some way along yours. Feel free to reach out to me for a chat through LinkedIn.
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