Vivian Salazar is a junior at Wichita State majoring in mechanical engineering. On campus, Salazar is a Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul Engineering intern for The Smart Factory by Deloitte. At Deloitte, she supports the smart maintenance and repair facility by managing Industry 4.0 machinery.
Her responsibilities include maintaining high-end machinery like the Metal X 3D printer and CNC machine. Salazar’s supervision of these machines provides vital support for the smart maintenance and repair facility’s operations.
These machines create new projects and parts, which are exhibited to potential clients to display Industry 4.0 technology capabilities. Towards the end of the spring 2025 semester, she got to present these technologies to clients, getting introduced to a new interest: client-facing work.
“I enjoyed connecting with other companies to share what Deloitte’s partnership is like with Wichita State,” Salazar said.
In summer 2025, after moving more than a thousand miles from Wichita, Kansas, to Boston, Salazar began working for Amazon Robotics.
She applied for this summer internship after learning about Amazon’s sustainable packaging efforts. She worked as a safety and compliance engineering intern with the mechatronics and sustainable packaging team.
“Taking care of the environment is very important to me. Another huge benefit is having the opportunity to move to Boston and getting to see and live in a new place,” Salazar said.
Similar to her Deloitte internship, Salazar brings fast, accurate support and performance to the team. She conducts design reviews on robots which assess hazard and risk factors.
As part of her role at Amazon Robotics, she travels to different centers to conduct safety reviews of the robots. At a fulfillment center in Virginia Beach, Virginia, she accurately performed an electrical hazard analysis on a newly installed packaging robot. In her assessment, she found a possible wire damage issue. After she notified her mentor, the robot was brought to the repair team just in time for an on-site inspection.
“Knowing that I was able to contribute to a safe working environment for associates across the country was one of the most rewarding moments of my internship,” Salazar said.
Salazar’s summer has been full of knowledge, experiences and memories. From the Air Capital of the World to the “The Cradle of Liberty” Salazar has worked across the states and across different engineering specialties.
“These experiences have shown me how to work cross functionally with all sides of engineering. Whether that’s safety, design, manufacturing, or client relations. I have learned the importance of paying attention to the small details, and how they can affect the outcome of any project,” Salazar said.
Each internship has brought Salazar insight into her career journey and future. Salazar’s strengths, areas for growth, and engineering pursuits have emerged from these internships.
“My internships have made it clear to me that engineering is so much more than just design or calculations, and it focuses on collaboration, communication and adaptability. Having the opportunity to explore all different fields of engineering has allowed me to discover that I enjoy hands-on and client-facing work,” Salazar said.
As she enters her junior year at Wichita State University, Salazar brings with her a wealth of knowledge, new skills, and a deeper understanding of the engineering field — all shaped by a summer of hands-on learning and cross-country experience.
Wichita State's applied learning program gives students hands-on, paid experience with industry partners, helping them build careers before graduation.
For more information, contact the Shocker Career Accelerator at (316) 978-3688, SCA@wichita.edu, or visit wichita.edu/Career. You can also stop by in person at the Marcus Welcome Center, Suite 139, on the Wichita State campus.
Courtesy Photo