We cut the wake-up time a little closer this morning, waking up at 8:35 for an 8:45 departure, but it all worked out as I managed to get breakfast and make it on time to our leaving spot.
We then departed for Inholland, a local university that focuses on aeronautical engineering. Although I am a business student, the lectures we got from the university were fascinating. I fly a lot so taking a deep dive into how a plane actually works and some of the behind-the-scenes aspects to the planes was so interesting and kept me very engaged. I also found Frank’s connection to the things we learned about aviation and our concept of the customer program very helpful. I had been so immersed in engineering, and this part of the lecture really helped me tie it all together.
After learning about aviation and a little about how business ties into that process, we got some lunch and headed to a couple activities. The first was learning about a satellite that the university plans to launch within the next 3 years. This was very interesting to listen to and think about from the business lens as they have to raise about 2 million euros in capital to be able to complete the project. They talked a little about how they would go about receiving this funding, mostly to do with government organizations that deal with space travel, but it was cool to compare the differences to how this type of project goes about getting funds compared to a start-up. After hearing about the satellite, we were given materials and tasked with making our own model planes in a competition to see whose flew the best. My group struggled a bit but we had fun and didn’t come in last.
We then departed from Inholland and were surprised with a trip to get freaky milkshakes and take a boat tour afterward. The milkshakes were very good but very filling so I felt like I needed a good nap afterward. Fortunately, the amazing history of Delft that we learned about on the boat tour kept me awake. The boat tour was very reminiscent of Amsterdam, but there was much different history with a lot of it surrounding famous painters.
Overall, today we got back to doing a lot and learning a lot. I would say this was one of the most informational days as I learned so much about aviation, the business surrounding it, and the history of Delft. I loved making connections between the way Inholland is raising capital for their satellite and the different ways I know startups attempt to raise capital. I am excited to learn more tomorrow and make more business connections! Hopefully, I can make more relating to the entrepreneurial side of things
