Working at Nevion – Q&A with Lukasz Safian

Meet Lukasz Safian, Test Engineer at Nevion, based in Poland.

Welcome to our newest series of Q&A with the Architects! At Nevion, we’re proud of our people and we have built up a great global team of professionals, with knowledge and expertise in broadcasting, telecoms, IT, hardware, software, baseband and IP network technology.

In this new series, we wanted to give you the chance to get to know some of our Architects personally.

What is your current role and what attracted you to join Nevion as part of your career journey?

I’m a Test Engineer at Nevion and began with the business in December 2018. Before I joined the team, I had already worked for Fideltronik, a company that provides production services for Nevion, so I had an existing relationship with some of the people here already. I therefore jumped at the chance when the opportunity came up to join Nevion, as I’d heard such great things about the company previously.

How has your role progressed whilst you’ve been at Nevion?

I’ve been in a slightly unique position during my time at the company in that I’ve been involved with both the professional services and the testing team that work on our VideoIPath product. Being part of the professional services team has given me some great opportunities to travel, such as visiting one of our customers in Switzerland, while I’ve also played a key role in testing our products and services, so it’s been great for me in terms of learning different skills. Another part of my development is the experience I’ve gained in using the Linux operating system, which has further expanded my skillset, and of course virtualization, which is a hot topic these days in our industry.   

What three words would you use to best describe Nevion?

My first would have to be people. The people at Nevion are smiley, friendly and always willing to help me and others, which makes for a positive working atmosphere. My second word would be innovation. We’re always devising exciting and innovative products at the business for the broadcasting sector, and it’s exciting to be a part of. The third word is related more directly to my personal experience while I’ve been at Nevion and that would be learning. I’ve continued to learn and build skills while I’ve been here which has been fantastic for me.

What interested you about working in the broadcast industry?

Unlike purely data-related products that are commonly found in other industries, I found the prospect of working with software that has a close relationship with hardware much more appealing, and that was something I was able to do at Nevion. Since working for Nevion, I’ve enjoyed working with one of our flagship products, VideoIPath and taking a deeper dive into the way that it cooperates with other devices. 

Can you tell us about a project you have worked on during your time at Nevion that you are most proud of?

Last year our team wanted to test solutions more quickly, but we found that Windows 10 was holding us back when it came to preparing environments. Although our software runs on Linux, we had to start it on Windows, and doing it that way just wasn’t efficient. It was my idea that we should just bypass Windows 10 and run purely on Linux. Once we did, it enabled a massive increase in performance and my colleagues were delighted with the change, and I also prepared instructions and a script for my team to set up the system effectively. I think it’s a great example of the freedom we’re given as a team to put forward new ideas and try out different ways of working.

What is your favorite thing about working for Nevion?

For me, it’s definitely the people. They are more than colleagues, they’re like friends. An example of the great bond we have between our colleagues is the virtual Friday social that we’ve been doing during the Covid-19 pandemic. Every Friday it’s a chance for us to have a beer and discuss how our week has gone, and it’s so important in terms of us remaining connected while travel has been so difficult. Whilst these virtual moments have been so crucial, I’m definitely pleased that the situation is getting better and travel is starting to pick up again, and I’m looking forward to some face-to-face time with my colleagues at some point in the (hopefully) near future!

What new innovation excites you the most in the broadcasting world?

It’s been particularly fascinating to see how the industry has changed over recent years. There’s now a major shift away from fixed solutions that previously involved numerous cables to more simple solutions that are harnessing emerging technologies such as the cloud. 5G is now starting to be used in broadcasting and the faster speeds are opening up a world of possibilities in the sector. It’s a really exciting time for the industry and I’m proud to be playing a part at Nevion.