Sansiri Koomrod’s passion for patisserie has made her extremely popular with her MP&L department colleagues at the Ford Thailand plant.
Sansiri – or Puii to her friends – has almost completed her Diplôme de Pâtisserie from the Corden Bleu Dusit, a three-stage course where she has learned to create classic and contemporary desserts and developed advanced techniques in chocolate and sugarwork from elite level French chefs.
She discovered her love for baking while working from home during Covid pandemic. Dissatisfied with supermarket bread and with more time on her hands, she picked up a few tips on bread making on YouTube – and was soon fully consumed by the art of baking long-fermentation sourdough bread.
That led to the course at Le Cordon Bleu, and she now puts those skills into practice by spoiling her teammates with cakes and treats on their birthdays.
“When I have the time, I like to make something nice for the team,” she said. “We have a very good team that works well together. We talk, listen and help each other solve issues and problems together. I feel very lucky to work with Ford and here at FTM.”
Puii joined Ford 11 years ago and is now part of the supply chain management team responsible for shipping components and parts from FTM to plants in South Africa, Vietnam, Argentina and Michigan.
“I really like that it's a challenging and dynamic role,” she explained. “I work with about 30 suppliers, releasing shipments to plants around IMG every week. Many issues come up and we need to constantly monitor situations to stay on top of things. It takes a lot of focus and understanding – but I’m always learning.”
She also practices yoga which, she says, helps keep her fit and healthy. She’s also taken up scuba diving and loves exploring “a whole new world” under the sea.
Puii says that baking and sharing gives her great pleasure – and that despite her new-found pâtisserie skills, she still enjoys baking sourdough bread the most.
“It has taught me to be patient,” she said. “You can’t expedite the process because we work with yeast which is microorganisms, so we have to be patient. If you’re patient and observe, you will get good results. It will take time, but it’s worth it.”