Unusual jobs: Maureen and the machines

A birthday card, a new credit card, an official letter you have been waiting for: When something arrives in your mailbox, you probably don't think about the people and machinery working behind the scenes to get it there. But after a letter disappears through the slot of a postbox, it enters a world of machines that position, read, code and sort it, often within a matter of hours. 

Mechatronics sound like science fiction, but Maureen's job is very real: keeping the machines running at DHL's Bremen Mail Center in Germany, where up to three million mail items are processed every day. When everything works, the process is almost invisible. When it doesn't, Maureen and her colleagues step in.

She is one of 18 mechatronics engineers responsible for the mail center's machinery. Maureen has worked at DHL Group for ten years, having started her career with an apprenticeship at Post & Parcel Germany. Today, at 29, she knows every type of machine in the building.

She even has a favorite.

Of all the machines at the Bremen Mail Center, Maureen's favorite is the integrated reading and video coding machine. But her job requires her to understand far more than just one system. The XL-class mail center has dozens of machines performing different stages of the sorting process, as well as its own workshop to keep them operational. Learning how every system works is no small task.

Repairs account for around a quarter to a third of her work. Maureen particularly enjoys the smaller ones - the kind where she can find the problem, replace a component and make something work again. When five separator blades recently broke inside one of the reading and video coding machines, she had them replaced within 10 to 15 minutes. "I like fixing things," she says.

But in Maureen's world, the most successful repair is often the one she never needs to make. Much of her time is spent inspecting, maintaining and cleaning the machines so that problems can be caught before anything comes to a standstill. "We work to make sure they don't break down in the first place," she explains.

Her approach sounds simple: "Look, maintain, clean." Knowing exactly what to look for is where the expertise comes in.

• Up to three million mail items are processed every day
• 18 mechatronics engineers
• An on-site workshop
• Two letter-facing machines
• 22 delivery-sequence sorting machines
• Two large-letter sorting systems with four input stations

Mechatronics combines physical engineering with digital technology. Maureen works with both, although she has a clear preference. "I like the hardware more," she says. "That's where I'm stronger."

She enjoys getting close to the machines, examining their components and understanding how the individual parts work together. And at 1.57 meters tall, she occasionally has an advantage that does not appear in any technical job description.

"We need your small hands for a minute," her colleagues sometimes tell her when a screw or component is hidden in a particularly tight space. It has become one of the ways Maureen contributes to a team in which everyone brings something different. Her colleagues share their knowledge, step in where needed and help one another solve problems. She describes it simply as "give and take."

That teamwork also keeps the workshop running around the clock. The mechatronics engineers work early, late and night shifts, including Saturdays during the day and Sunday nights. Three colleagues cover the late and night shifts, while the remaining team members work the early shift.

The early shift is Maureen's least favorite. She is much happier taking on an extra late shift when necessary. Overall, though, she says the rhythm suits her well - and it certainly keeps the job interesting. "No shift is ever the same."

Some breakdowns leave room to breathe. If one of the mail center's three integrated reading and video coding machines fails, the other two can continue processing mail while the team investigates.

A problem with a large-letter sorting system can be more urgent. If one component brings all its input stations to a standstill, an entire part of the operation stops with it. The mail continues to arrive, but the machine responsible for moving it forward is suddenly going nowhere.

That is when technical knowledge is only part of what the job demands. The other part is staying calm. "I work quite well in situations like that," Maureen says. "But I'm never alone. My colleagues always pitch in."

If someone is unexpectedly absent from a late shift, a colleague from the early team steps in. If a difficult repair needs more than one pair of hands, the team tackles it together. Despite the scale and speed of the operation, Maureen says there is rarely any real panic at the mail center.

"And if things do become stressful," she adds, "we share the stress."

By the time a letter reaches your door, the machines - and the people who kept them running - have disappeared from the story. That's the point. Maureen heads home knowing, "I did my part" and, after a particularly satisfying repair, sometimes even, "I did that well." Then she leaves with a clear conscience - until the next shift begins.