Why did you choose a career as a naval architect?
My granddad was a physics teacher and he helped develop my scientific curiosity. I remember sitting on his knee at the top of the stairs and seeing how far we could get a slinky to go. I started thinking of engineering as a career when I was in sixth form, but I didn’t really consider a maritime career until after university.
How did your career evolve?
I applied to a few organisations that did big engineering and the MoD seemed right at the time. That was when I discovered naval architecture. As a mechanical engineer I could have worked in various domains at the MoD. I chose maritime because I liked the idea of working with “one-offs” and I’ve never regretted that decision.
The MoD presented me with a range of demanding tasks. Assessing the stability of landing platform docks (HMS Albion and