- Employee
- 19/03/2025
Behind the Scenes | Roberto Fedecostante, lab technician
Keeping a university running is no easy feat. It takes a lot of hands to make sure everything is in order, from administration to cleaning and from security to technical maintenance. Who are the unsung heroes behind the scenes keeping everything on track? In this series, Cursor shines the spotlight on TU/e employees. Today: Roberto Fedecostante, who as a technician at the department of Chemical Engineering and Chemistry works on automating experimental setups.
The espresso machine in the corner of his office reveals Fedecostante’s roots: the Italian came to Eindhoven three years ago. Soon after, he started working at the TU/e. As a lab technician for Chemical Engineering and Chemistry, he designs and creates electrical devices that are needed to control experimental setups in the labs. He also makes the software and interfaces for it.
“You basically have all these devices that you need to control. I just grab them all together, connect them and make them communicate together. I create a user interface to be able to operate it. That includes safety measures. Which means that if the temperature gets too high or there’s a gas leak, it shuts down automatically.”
What time do you clock in?
Around 8.30, depending on the traffic and other plans. When I get in I first check my email while waiting for my colleague. Then we go for a coffee. I have an espresso machine in my office, but I like to go to the coffee machine for the social aspect.
What does your day look like?
That depends on what I’m focusing on. When I work more on the software part, I work in the office. I also spend time in the lab in Helix or Matrix, where I physically build experimental setups. Normally I work around two to three weeks on a setup from my office, and then I move the pc to the lab. There I connect all the devices little by little. Sometimes I spend a whole week just solving a problem. I’m gaining a lot of experience doing that. You don’t always know why something goes wrong, so you have to figure that out and you learn from that.
What led you to this job?
My father passed it on to me. He has always been into working with electricity, woodworking and things like that. Even now after his retirement he is always doing things around the house. I’m like that too. When I was nineteen I started working in an electrical company, later I worked at a place that worked on automating alarm systems. From there I came to the university.
What is the best part of your job?
I like that I have a lot of freedom. My boss trusts me. I get appreciated for what I’m doing. I also like helping people. Getting mentioned in the acknowledgement lists of PhD students makes me proud. I’ve been mentioned in around eight or nine theses by now.
A thing I also like is that not everything is about money at the university, like in private companies. Here it’s more about the quality of your work.
And the least enjoyable part?
Not having enough time. Sometimes I get overwhelmed when I think of all the things I have to do. And then on top of that ten people ask me to do things for them at the same time. It can be a bit too much. And I start overthinking things.
What project are you most proud of?
There is one that I did for a private company in Spain, it was actually the first prototype I built here at TU/e. Sometimes they call me about small problems, but further it works perfectly fine. I made the whole thing myself, including the coding. Now they want another machine, because the one we made worked so well.
What time do you finish?
Around five. I usually wait for my girlfriend, she works at ASML and she picks me up by car. At home I like to cook. I don’t only make Italian food, I also like to try other things. As a hobby I like to play video games. We’re looking to buy a house now, and hopefully when we find one, it will have enough space for a proper gaming setup. In the house I also want to automate everything, integrating all the lights, blinds and things like that in one app.
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