Oman Makes Me Different

— Jun-Yi Wang, Field Electrical Engineer, Electrical Engineering Dept., CTCI Corp., Group Engineering Business

Could you briefly tell us about yourself?

Hi, I am Neal from the Electrical Engineering Department. Two years ago, I was assigned to LIWA Plastics Industrial Complex in Oman as a Field Electrical Engineer with great honor. As my first project assignment, I learned so much from this giant project, which includes 11 substations, 66 sets of transformers, and 800 pieces of motors. As tight schedule is the norm, l always need to make accurate decisions to solve immediate issues at short notice. This has benefited me greatly. 

What made you join CTCI?

According to a senior graduate who went to the same school as I did, CTCI is a well-established company that offers the following advantages:

● Many promotion opportunities
● Opportunities for foreign dispatches
● World-renowned EPC contractor

These are the reasons why I chose to join CTCI. If someone asks me whether CTCI is a friendly place for fresh graduates, the answer will definitely be “YES.”

Could you give us some examples of the foreign culture and people that impress you during your stay (when being relocated)?

People from around 60 countries participate in this project, so it’s like making a round-the-world trip when I came to the site.

My greatest surprise is the Muslim culture. From my previous knowledge and what I read in many news reports, the Middle East is not a safe region. But Omani people are actually very polite, kind, and friendly. I met my best Omani friend, Abdullah, and he brought me into Arabic culture.

“Habibi” means “My dear” in Arabic. Arabic people usually use it to say hello. However, do NOT say this to a person with opposite gender, as he or she may find it quite harassing and offensive.

Most Omanis treat their friends sincerely. For instance, during the peak of the covid-19 pandemic, rumor had it that someone who looked similar to me in body size tripped outside the restaurant one noon. Soon I received many messages and phone calls from the Owner side and my Omani friends, who sent their care.

How do you get rid of work stress?

It’s a pleasure to meet many good friends from different departments. In spare time, we would travel to the modern capital city of Muscat, ancient Al Rustaq Fort, natural landscape sink hole, etc. We would also try local Arabic food. It helps us build a strong team spirit. No matter what problem we face, we always solve it together, regardless of which department he/she comes from. I will never forget the days when we worked hard together, since we are a family forever.

During my vacation, I arranged backpacking tours to Thailand, Japan, Austria, Hungary, and the Czech Republic. As my leader always says, young people should take the opportunity to explore the world and get to know themselves. The world won’t come to us. We have to go after it actively. 

Jogging and exercising in the camp where I work is also one of my ways to release stress. This helps me stay in good shape and remain energetic. I think it’s my responsibility not to let my family worry about me when I work abroad.

As we know, crabs are expensive in Taiwan. Not here in Oman though, where there is abundance of seafood. The price of crabs is 20% less than those in Taiwan. So, I often go to the fish market with my colleagues on weekends to enjoy delicious crabs. If you are a crab lover, you must not miss it!

For most of us, we have few chances to watch movies in a foreign cinema. Lucky for me, my friend Abdullah invited me to see “John Wick 3” in the movie theater. It’s a very special experience to watch the movie with Arabic subtitles. It is only by then that I realized that Arabic should be read from right to left.

Could you share some interesting experience you had when working in CTCI?

Before I came here, I could have never imagined that one day I would cook. Thanks to the influence of my colleagues, however, I picked up a spatula. Now, my signature dish is the golden fried rice. Those who have tasted it gave me full of compliments. I wish to make the dish for my family one day and surprise them.

There are six engineering companies working together in this project. It is very difficult to integrate all the designs. I would like to give thanks to our AE Michael Chen, who provides the typical designs for each system with his experience and guides us well so that the engineering companies can follow up. We could use the typical designs to resolve problems easily, which also benefits the owner to manage this project after project handover. Nevertheless, for details which are not covered by typical designs, it’s the field engineer’s responsibility. As a field engineer, I used to have a site trip with the subcontractor and construction superintendent once a week. Anyone may share his/her problem to discuss with others and make a decisive decision at the site directly. It helps to shorten the construction schedule and meet our target.

Whenever I face a problem or difficulty that can’t be solved on my own, I could either ask my leader and colleagues at the site for help, or I could contact the engineering department in Taipei for support. No one needs to face and deal with challenges alone. Instead, we work as a team and have an entire department as our back-up.

We face new problems and challenges every day at work sites. I use my mantra "Finish early, go home early" to remind myself to put all efforts at work and complete the tasks as soon as possible.

As a Chinese saying goes, “the moon you see overseas is not necessarily fuller than the one you see in your own country.” In terms of engineering capabilities, CTCI is not inferior to its European and American counterparts. I used to be unconfident about my capabilities before being dispatched abroad. But in fact, attitude is the key. We should never underestimate ourselves. Based on my own experiences, I would highly recommend young people to go for overseas opportunities to gain experiences and build confidence. In the meantime, don’t forget to remain humble, be willing to learn, be aggressive, and strive for excellence, just like CTCI’s predecessors.