What inspired you to pursue a career in engineering?
From an early age, I was interested in engineering, partly due to some family members being engineers and my Grandfather used to buy me electrical kits when I was a child to play with. It was probably a college trip to the local nuclear power plant on Anglesey that inspired me to want to pursue a career as an electrical engineer specifically in the nuclear industry as opposed to a different sector.
Education and training
I attended Liverpool John Moores University from 2014 to 2018 and achieved a 1st Class Electrical & Electronic Engineering Integrated Masters.
Upon completing my degree I took another job with an engineering company and then joined LCA Group in September 2019. Since joining I have completed several external courses including the EPLAN software training, functional safety training, programmable safety workshop, and have also taken part in various in-house training sessions. I really enjoy the constant development of my skills and seeing those new skills being put into practice and always having something new to learn.
What does a typical day at LCA Group involve?
A typical day can involve all aspects of a project lifecycle which has allowed me to gain an understanding and skill set beyond just engineering.
I produce quotations for new project enquiries which involves me considering both the technical and commercial requirements of a project before I can price the job correctly.
I spend a lot of time completing detailed EC&I and control system designs for a wide range of industries and applications, which typically involves me producing design deliverables such as CAD drawings, schedules, and specifications for projects.
I will also get involved with project engineering tasks for control panels I have designed which are currently in manufacture; this could be answering any technical queries from the manufacturing team, liaising with the client, informing our procurement team of what components the project requires etc.
No day is the same which is what keeps the job interesting.
What would you say is the best bit about your job?
For me, the main thing which I love is seeing the progression I have made from where I started after graduating three years ago and knowing I have so much more to learn and achieve.
I like the collaborative environment at LCA, we work as a team to come up with the best solutions to the engineering problems we face and in the end, it is always really rewarding to see a project become a reality when all the pieces fit together.
Working at LCA gives me the opportunity to learn from others, from the more experienced engineers to those from other disciplines in the business.
What are your plans for your future career?
I would like to become a chartered engineer with the IET within the next two years, and I would like to continue attending various training courses to continue expanding my skillset to develop me as a person but also to benefit the business.
I currently really enjoy working on both large and small scale nuclear engineering projects and hope this variety continues. I am excited for what the future holds for the nuclear industry as the UK looks to hit its net zero carbon target by 2050.
The dream is to eventually work my way up to Lead Engineer level and potentially beyond.
What advice would you give to someone thinking of studying Engineering at University?
I would say to seize any opportunity you can, big or small and to make sure you get the most out of these opportunities, that could be training courses, site visits, workshops, volunteering, networking events etc.
It’s also important to remember that as a new graduate you aren’t expected to know everything so enjoy the process of learning and make sure to ask as many questions as you can and don’t dwell on any mistakes you make as this is often the best way of ensuring it never happens again!