Chester: National Grid engineer celebrates 50 years in industry

Dave, from Chester, began his career in the electricity industry with MANWEB fifty years ago, self-enrolling on electrical engineering courses before he was sponsored by the company to develop his career further.

He joined a training scheme to become an Electrical and Electronic Power System Engineer (PSE). He later joined the Central Electricity Generating Board in 1979 as a 3rd Engineer.

He spent 23 years progressing through the engineering ladder and became 1st Engineer with National Grid in 1992. For the next nine years, Dave worked in various critical project roles, some of which moved him into the business system software replacement area of the business, where he was challenged to move with the evolving technology around him.

Dave said: "One of the highlights of my career was working on Dinorwig hydroelectric power station in the 1980s, it set the scene for my career at National Grid. Back then, this was one of the biggest projects the then CEGB had undertaken and was worth around £440m.

Dinorwig hydroelectric power station under construction. (Image: National Grid)

"It was a huge job and took a while to get to grips with as a young Commissioning Engineer within the Commissioning Team. But from that, I had been part of a large construction project and I didn’t shy away from that as I moved forwards in my career."

In 2007, he moved onto work as a project manager, across what was Major Infrastructure Projects, Capital Delivery and most recently, Asset Operations. He is currently the Project Manager for the Deeside Off Grid Innovation Centre works and the SVC replacement works at Cellarhead 400kV substation.

"It has been fascinating to work in an industry which is continuing to change and evolve on such a fundamental scale on the journey towards net zero. As more renewables are connected to the system, we now see power being generated from many more geographical locations which has presented new challenges to overcome," Dave said.

"Over the last fifteen years, my focus at National Grid has shifted – I’m now connecting more wind farms and fewer power stations - which has been a hugely motivating and exciting transition in my career."

"I’ve been lucky to have worked on a variety of projects with National Grid that are enabling a low carbon future. These have ranged from helping to facilitate the Western HVDC link – which will transport renewable energy from Scotland to homes and businesses in Wales and England – to the conversion of Deeside’s Combined Cycle Gas Turbine (CCGT) power plant in Flintshire. The Deeside Power Station’s two gas turbines have been repurposed to provide National Grid ESO with vital system support services – securing power supplies and enabling more wind and solar generation.

"Currently, I’m a project manager at Deeside Centre for Innovation (DCI), a 400kV modified substation now used for testing and research activities – the first of its kind in Europe – offering 24/7 testing for electricity network assets, under real-life conditions."

Dave said that the key to a long career in the industry is to get to grips with new technology, to develop IT skills and be ready for the changing nature of business systems.

Outside of his impressive career in the electricity industry, Dave enjoys caravanning and travels throughout the year with friends. He often uses this to indulge in his passion; industrial archaeology, visiting old railways, industrial heritage sites and aviation museums.

After a 50 year career working on a range of projects, Dave now finds he removes and replaces equipment that are part of projects he helped to install decades before.

Dave said he'll continue to work on all things construction and Deeside, eventually working towards retirement and smaller projects: "And of course, I will still be travelling in the caravan when I get the chance."