Case studies: Design engineer: Christopher

Christopher studied naval architecture for four years at the universities of Glasgow and Strathclyde and graduated with a BEng in Naval Architecture and Small Craft Engineering in 2006.

After graduation, I decided to go straight into industry rather than going on to complete a Masters and I started as a design engineer within the engineering department of SeaTec shortly after graduation. This is an entry-level graduate role which has set me on the path to become a consultant naval architect. For this, I need to achieve chartered status and have a few years’ industry experience under my belt.

Whilst SeaTec don’t have a formal graduate training programme, I’ve been given the opportunity to work on a wide variety of projects and am offered training appropriate to any new area I’m working in. Thanks to the size of the company and the range of operational areas we cover, I’ve been able to experience many different aspects of naval architecture in the last three years, all of which is important experience that will help me to achieve chartered status.

My work is mainly office based, but I do make occasional ship and shipyard visits, both within the UK and overseas, for pre-purchase inspections and information gathering. When in the office, my work can include drafting general design concepts to develop an initial design or using specialist naval architecture software to assess design strength and stability. I’m also involved in the general structural design of vessels and I can be working on anything from small modifications to full ship designs, all the time ensuring that the designs not only work but are also in line with all the relevant regulations.

In addition to my main role, I’m also a member of the Vessel Emergency Support (VES) team which means I can be on-call to assist any vessel registered with the service in the event of a collision, grounding or other emergency.

As my career continues to progress with SeaTec, I’m taking on more and more responsibility and will start to move into supervisory roles on a variety of projects. Once I have a few years of industry experience, I intend to apply for chartered status, something which my employer fully supports. This is important for me personally in terms of career development as it will open up wider opportunities for me.

Like most naval architects, it’s likely that I’ll eventually specialise in one or two fields but, at the moment, I’m still exploring a variety of areas. The benefit of working for a company covering such a wide range of work is that I have the opportunity to transfer to different sections and to build up a range of experience, which will help me decide what I might like to specialise in eventually

I enjoy the challenge of working in a constantly changing industry that makes the most of the new technologies available and allows me to explore an area that has always been of interest to me. There’s a lot of variety in my role and the ability to use my experience and creativity to come up with innovate solutions is what keeps me motivated.