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Tom's Story

Latesr Hreader tom story

What do you like to do in your spare time?

I have two brilliant kids and a wonderfully supportive partner so my favourite thing is spending quality time with my family. I hit the gym most days of the week, and I’m a complete petrol head!

What are your dislikes?

Sunday drivers, they don’t look out for us motorbike users! That and city driving as its unfamiliar territory for me.

How long have you worked with Tritech?

16 years and counting.

When did you first know you had a passion for engineering?

As long as I can remember. My parents made comments that Christmas was a nightmare because anything I ever received was dismantled by boxing day so I could see how it works.

There was a company that used to make rewireable electronics kits that you could build circuits with (flashing lights, number generators, radio receivers etc). They were my go-to Christmas gift! When I was 10-11 years old, I was lucky enough to have a friend of the family who recognised my growing passion for computers and electronics. To my delight he bought me a laptop! Back then laptops were extortionately expensive and that was me hooked. I also took that to bits but that’s another story…

What attracted you to starting your first position as Electronic Technician

Back in 2003 whilst in 4th year at secondary school I did a week of work experience at System Technologies [which became Tritech]. I assume I made a fair impression because a few days after returning to school, one of the directors called my parents and asked if I’d be prepared to come back and work the school summer holidays. So, I worked for six weeks doing IT support and a few bits in production.

System Technologies had a real buzz about the place, they even had a swimming pool on the shop floor! In the business of sonar design and manufacture, they had factory full of electronics and computers. All the things I love to get my hands on and I’d grown up messing around with. The stuff they were working on was awesome! I had it set in my mind that once I left school, I wanted to be at System Technologies (which of course is now Tritech). My wish came true, and after completing an apprenticeship here was offered my 1st position as an Electronic Technician.

What or who has made the biggest impact on developing your career as an engineer?

I don’t really want to name names but there were certainly a few key individuals over the years that either went out of their way and took the time to really help me out, or took a chance and gave me the opportunity to move forward with my career. People have taken time to help me understand schematics, how to fault-find, use complex instrumentation and even delve into the principles of lean manufacturing disciplines. I’m a self-taught programmer thanks to Tritech. They donated me the equipment I needed to progress this skill both in quiet times at work or in my own time (out-of-hours).

Hands-on learning has always suited me over sitting in a classroom or lecture. I’m still fascinated by the depth of knowledge and skill-set required to make our products. Software, hardware, acoustics, mechanical design and market experience to name a few; They all play their part in making the world-class equipment we produce. My family have always supported me and tried to steer me in the right direction. I’ve always been the go-to person that’s been able to fix most things. If it's got a screen, a battery or an engine I can usually bring it back to life.

So as your career progressed, how did Tritech support your passion for engineering to develop your skills and experience?

As I mentioned earlier, Tritech would let me do bits of ‘extracurricular’ activities in quiet time, even giving me a laptop with some developer/design tools to take home. This was whilst I was working in production as an Electronics Technician. Eventually [between production work] I was tasked with some test software activities, web development, software derived KPI reporting, and electronics design/PCB (printed circuit board) layout activities. I’ve put a lot of hours in at home, reading up and teaching myself so I could complete the growing list of activities I was tasked with. I was then fortunate enough to be offered a route into the design office. I had to pinch myself, I never expected to have the opportunity to get into the design team as at the time, I wasn’t a university-educated candidate that the design team was generally compromised of.

I've managed to overcome many challenges over the years and I am proud to say that I have contributed to some very complex engineering projects, some of which I’ve lead, and some of which have challenged but never defeated me. Tritech has always given me the opportunity to better myself and advance my contributions to different sectors of our business. Gaining confidence in my own ability is the key thing. I wasn't a particularly confident person when I left school.

If you could wind back time, what advice would you give your younger self? What would you do differently?

I am proud of myself for having achieved all that I have in the last 16 years by following my passion for business and engineering. I’d perhaps have gotten into a engineering position earlier if I’d have gone down the university route, but on the flipside I’d have a student loan that would need paying. In my younger days I’m really not sure how well I’d of applied myself as a full time university student. I liked having a job! I completed my technical certificates up to HNC (all funded my Tritech) and in hindsight I should have continued my technical studies and done my engineering degree instead of going down the business management route. Some point in the future I will likely pursue further qualifications in engineering, but with two really young children and a full-time job it isn’t something that I can dedicate the time to at the moment.

What is the most rewarding aspect of your career development journey so far?

Without a doubt it was getting the Electronics Design Engineer job I’m currently in, even more so getting asked to “take the lead” on numerous multidisciplinary engineering projects to date. At the point of leaving school, I never thought I’d have been able to achieve the career I have due the series of qualifications needed to work at this level and my lack of confidence back then. When I got offered the position, I relate it to that feeling you get when you pass your driving test. If you had said to me 15 years ago that you'll be a Design Engineer at Tritech and have this position of responsibility, I wouldn't have believed it.

What would you say to someone at sixth form or university considering a career in electronics engineering?

Try to gain an apprenticeship in the technical field, and try a find an SME to do it in if possible. You’ll get more one-to-one time with the experienced folks that way. Grow your knowledge while working (and more importantly being paid) and get the company to fund your education through the modern apprenticeship program. Don't put yourself in debt at such a young age unless you're absolutely sure that's the career path you want to choose.

How do you see your role within Tritech developing in the next five years?

Tritech is progressing towards its next generation of products and so I see myself been heavily involved in the early stages of the development cycle with a focus of designing some exciting new features in both embedded software and programmable logic design. We have a good multidiscipline team of people in Tritech and I see myself continuing my career development journey here for many years to come.

What advantages are there to develop your engineering career within Tri Tech instead of some of the larger corporations in the furnace area?

I know a few companies around this area, and I can’t think of many in the Furness Peninsula that uses the span of technologies that Tritech use in their products. Several companies utilise embedded software, in-house PCB design or offshore mechanical engineering disciplines but not to the same level of complexity that Tritech does. The big engineering giants around here don't offer careers where you get to cover everything from engineering leadership, software, firmware, programmable logic, circuit design, all in one role. I consider myself lucky to work at Tritech putting my mark on the specialist range of systems we have developed for the energy, subsea inspection, marine life preservation and defence industries.

What does the future of electronics engineering look like from your perspective?

Exciting! Technology is moving away from discrete subsystems to high levels of integration on insanely fast processing platforms, capable of crunching numbers and performing operations at an incomprehensible rate. Power efficiency is beginning to dominate our field as different markets try to leverage cleaner ‘green’ sources of energy, and we as engineers must have this in the forefront of out minds when designing systems for the future. 


What is the most recent engineering project you have worked on?
 

The most recent project I’ve been involved in was as Lead Engineer on our Precision Altimeter MKII. Having worked on its predecessor over the years and given its success in the market, I felt a big deal of responsibility in making sure its replacement could follow in its footsteps and maintain its ‘industry standard’ reputation. We chose to completely redesign the device internals but keep its external form factor for backwards compatibility purposes. That meant a new choice of processing platform, higher efficiency design and the use of modernised PCB design techniques. The project presented us with an opportunity to design a platform that served all the configuration modes, interfacing options and frequencies of operation that made the previous product a success but cram it all into one standardised set of electronics. This choice made for increased efficiency in our supply chain through volume purchasing as well as ease of manufacture, and in turn makes the product more cost effective for our customer.

As well as project lead, I was tasked with the development of the embedded software, programmable hardware, and production test tools. Although our engineering team members at Tritech tend to specialise in a particular subject (weather that be software, hardware, programmable logic, mechanical design, or system development), our roles are multidisciplinary by nature due to the high level of integration between the different elements that make up our products. We need to be able to understand and critique each other’s input to ensure we get the best product to market. As someone who has an interest in how things work, project such as the Precision Altimeter MKII are what keep me hooked!

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