When you join Caterpillar, you're joining a global team who cares not just about the work we do – but also about each other. We are the makers, problem solvers, and future world builders who are creating stronger, more sustainable communities. We don't just talk about progress and innovation here – we make it happen, with our customers, where we work and live. Together, we are building a better world, so we can all enjoy living in it.
We currently have some exciting opportunities for industrial placement students to join Caterpillar across several of our sites. You will have the opportunity to work with others across our organisation and you will be directly involved, and at the heart of our business, participating on strategic projects.
*Please note that in order to be eligible to complete a 12 Month Industrial Placement commencing June 2025, you must be in your penultimate year of study unless enrolled in an integrated master’s program.
What do we do?
Caterpillar Inc. is the world’s leading manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines, and diesel-electric locomotives. Since 1925, we’ve been driving sustainable progress and helping customers build a better world through innovative products and services. Throughout the product life cycle, we offer services built on cutting-edge technology and decades of product expertise. These products and services, backed by our global dealer network, provide exceptional value to help our customers succeed.
We have a clear vision to be the global leader in providing customer value in the markets in which we operate. Our core values (Integrity, Excellence, Teamwork, Commitment and Sustainability) are key to our success.
The Advanced Components (ACM) division spans seven countries and has 5,000+ employees. We deliver operational excellence in manufacturing drivetrain, hydraulic components, and operator stations, producing components valued greater than $3B. The ACM team includes Supply Chain, Manufacturing Engineering, Quality Engineering, Environmental Health and Safety, and Operations Managers who align to deliver superior safety, quality, velocity, and cost to our business partners. The supply chain function covers many areas including Order to Delivery, Demand Management, Material Supply. Transportation and Compliance and Supplier Quality.
Diversity at Caterpillar
When we leverage our people's experiences, backgrounds, and cultures in an inclusive environment, we enable every individual to achieve their full potential, which drives business success. We are proud to be active partners with both the Society of Women Engineers (SWE) & Women's Engineering Society (WES). We also have numerous well supported employee resource groups. Caterpillar is an equal opportunity employer, and we welcome applicants from diverse backgrounds.
What experiences can we offer you?
As an equal opportunity employer, we value diversity at Caterpillar and believe the more experience you can gain early in your career the further you can go. That’s why during our yearlong scheme we place an emphasis on multiple diverse projects. You will have the opportunity to work and collaborate with people in Caterpillar facilities worldwide and we are looking for you to bring fresh, innovative ideas to solve complex technical problems. You will be a fully involved team member with responsibility and accountability for key project deliverables. That said, you will be given all the support you require to be successful.
Our placement roles have the additional benefit of a workplace mentor; this could be your manager or a technical expert who will support you throughout your time at Caterpillar and help you gain the professional development and skills you need to be set up for success! Our placement students can expect to return to university with further developed technical skills and experience of how University learning is applied to the workplace.
We also operate a conditional offer process; our highest performing placement students are fast tracked to our graduate development scheme. This includes a financial incentive and the potential of a summer work placement. Offers will be made based on the condition that a graduate role is available at the time of your graduation and that you achieve a min of 2:2.
We have an exciting opportunity to join our Supply Chain team based in Springvale. The focus of this department is to operate on a tactical / strategic basis to ensure our supply chain drives towards excellence in efficiency, reliability, and flexibility. As a Supply Chain Planner, you will collaborate with global suppliers to ensure execution to planned orders and schedules and resolves issues with suppliers to ensure material availability for the facility production.
There will also be an opportunity for you to collaborate with the purchasing, quality, and manufacturing operations teams. Along with getting involved in exciting projects including New Product Introduction. Working as part of this small team you will really get to make a positive impact during your placement.
Job duties and responsibilities may include but are not limited to
- Manage 3rd party contractor on site and ensure timely material delivery to Point of Use (POU).
- Utilize root cause corrective actions to resolve quality and supplier performance issues.
- Deliver improvements in point of use material availability.
- Involvement in cross functional projects when opportunities arise to improve efficiency.
- Ensure timely delivery of materials to the facility.
- Supplier collaboration to meet facility production plans.
- Requisition materials and ensure inventory levels maintained.
- Manage and perform supplier scheduling and implementation of engineering changes for the efficient manufacture of products and components.
Projects will include full integration into Caterpillar Supply Chain planning systems through the onboarding of all aspects of the Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) system.
Working with experienced team members you will receive all the coaching, guidance, and support for your work and personal development. It is our intention that you will be given opportunities to develop your knowledge and experience within a real-world setting. Our aim is that these industrial placement opportunities provide the firm foundations necessary for a long and successful future career.
Who are we looking for?
We’re looking for people who can show us a highly participative working style, and who thrive in a team of committed professionals. And at the same time, we need people who can think independently and drive change through persuasion and influence. Strong analytical, communication and presentational skills are a must as you’d need to package clear strategic recommendations based on data and sell them confidently to production and management employees.
It is essential that applicants should have achieved or be on track to achieve a minimum of a 2:2 in one of the following disciplines: Supply Chain, Logistics, Engineering.
We will provide you the training and support you need to be successful at Caterpillar.
Recruitment Process Guidelines
Here is a brief overview of what you can expect when applying to our Early Career roles…
Online Application: The first stage of the process is to complete the online application and attach your CV, this must be done before the closing date of the role that you're applying for. Once we reach the close date, we will begin reviewing all our applications, this may take a little while and we will contact you as soon as possible to let you know if you have been successful in moving forward to the next stage.
Stage one – Video Interview: If selected, you will be invited to complete a user-friendly video interview which will then be reviewed by the Hiring Team. At this stage, if you are successful, you will be invited to attend an Assessment Centre which we anticipate will be held on Monday 3 rd February onsite at our Springvale facility so please try to keep that date free. We would also recommend that you check your spam emails and your Workday account for updates.
Stage two - Assessment Centre: The Assessment Centre Day will look at a range of behaviours such as teamwork, decision-making, communication, and problem-solving. We aim to make these days fun, inclusive and as relaxed as possible.
Stage three – Offer: After the Assessment Centre, the Caterpillar team will review the feedback and extend offers to our preferred candidates, we aim to do this as quickly as possible. Placement students will start on 30th June 2025. We look forward to receiving your application to join Caterpillar!
Come join us!