Job Title: Principal Manufacturing Engineer
Company: Druck
Tell us a bit about yourself. This can include telling us what fires you up about the job you do, your professional achievements, your career highlights. What inspires you? What attracted you to pursue a career in manufacturing? Is there anything else you’d like to say about either your job or UK manufacturing?
Fundamentally, I love making stuff, and I love to learn new things. Working in manufacturing gives me opportunities to do both, every day. Whether that is figuring out a better way of making things, seeing something go wrong and working out how to fix it and prevent it from happening again, or learning about a new product or customer application. As I’ve progressed through my career, it has been interesting to reflect on how day-to-day tasks and responsibilities change, but fundamentally the things I really enjoy and am passionate about remain constant.
What advice would you give to your younger self?
Believe in yourself, don’t take negative criticism to heart and don’t be afraid to fail – the biggest learning opportunities come when things don’t go how you expected them to.
What is your favourite engineered/manufactured product?
For me, this is the Citroen DS. The amount of technical innovation and solutions that went into the design – along with it being to my eyes, a beautiful shape, blending style and function – makes it a showcase for what engineers can achieve.
Please give one interesting fact about yourself that not many people know.
I have a ‘get well soon’ card from the flying doctors who flew me back from holiday in Switzerland after I scalded myself seriously as a toddler. Sadly, this isn’t the only scar from hot liquid I have, as a few years later my older brother managed to pour a jug of hot chocolate over my left arm. I still shouldn’t be trusted with hot liquids to this day.
If you weren’t in manufacturing what would be your dream job?
Travelling the world to find the best coffee.
