Mechanical Engineering Internship – Field Operations

Synnefa is an innovative agriculture and agribusiness company founded in 2014, focused on solving post-harvest losses for African farmers through engineering solutions like Smart Solar Dryers.

Post-harvest losses cost African farmers a share of everything they grow, which is an engineering problem this role aims to address. Synnefa is a small, fast-paced, innovative team where designs are fabricated, installed, and judged in the field within weeks. The intern will spend significant time on site in various regions, directly impacting the performance of installed products for farmers. This role is ideal for engineers who want their work to be applied rather than just filed.

1. Prepare and maintain engineering drawings for our standard product range, under proper version control
2. Document drying chambers, airflow paths, ventilation, and fan and component selection
3. Instrument installed dryers and collect temperature, humidity and airflow data, then tabulate and present it clearly
4. Detail drying beds, racks and materials handling arrangements
5. Support thermal and drying performance testing across different crops and regions
6. Produce accurate quantity take-offs and bills of quantities from approved designs
7. Produce fabrication drawings and jig documentation for our workshop and subcontractor partners
8. Inspect sites against written quality control checklists, and record and close out defects
9. Verify materials on delivery against specification
10. Prepare as-built documentation and closeout packages for every deployment
11. Submit a written weekly report on your sites, on the agreed day, without being asked

1. A recent graduate — BSc in Mechanical Engineering, completed within the last two years. Agricultural or Biosystems Engineering with a strong thermal and fluids grounding also works. Candidates awaiting conferment may apply with a transcript
2. Competent in AutoCAD. SolidWorks, Inventor or equivalent is a plus
3. Comfortable in Excel for take-offs, schedules and data
4. Willing to travel to rural field sites at short notice
5. Clear written English — a large part of this job is documentation other people rely on
6. Someone who shows their working. When you give us a number, you can tell us where it came from
7. Someone who says ‘I don’t know yet’ and then goes and finds out
8. Genuinely interested in agriculture and in farmers doing better