Profile: Alex Walters, Graduate Structural Engineer, Cardiff, United Kingdom

Alex is a Graduate Structural Engineer at the Cardiff office in the UK.  She joined Opus in 2006 after spending her penultimate summer break from University working for Opus, “The work placement was a huge learning curve for me, I really enjoyed myself and I was able to get a real working insight into the industry.”
Alex is currently building up her experience working on a wide range of projects, “I get plenty of opportunities to be involved in the whole design process.  Most of the projects I’m working on are currently at the design stage, so once they get to construction I’ll have chance to build up experience on site.  I feel really lucky to have the support of the senior engineers at Cardiff who, however busy, are always willing to make time to help and I’m also enjoying getting first hand experience working closely with architects and contractors.”   
Conservation Engineering is the area where Alex’s sights are now set and Opus’ study award scheme is assisting with fees to fund her on a Masters degree in the Conservation of Historic Buildings.  “It’s a great confidence boost and really encouraging that Opus is supporting me in my career development”. Alex is at the right office for this area of work; the conservation team at Cardiff carry out 90% of civil and structural engineering work for the Welsh Assembly Government's historic environment division (Cadw), which includes projects at both Caerphilly Castle and Castell Coch.

Profile: Ben Holland, Projects Leader, Wellington, New Zealand

When Ben arrived in Nelson in 1998 he took on the role of road safety manager for 400km of local State Highway network, keeping the travelling public as safe as possible. Ben then progressed to deputy and ultimately team leader for this project. At the same time he became a committee member for the Road Asset Management Sector and the Road Safety Engineering interest group.  “After carrying out the role of team leader for a number of years, I was privileged to be offered the Business Manager’s position in Nelson, leading a great team of roughly 30 people from various disciplines. This was a thoroughly enjoyable position that is both hugely challenging and rewarding.” Despite taking on this role he has retained the flexibility within Opus to carry out exciting projects and recently project managed a very large team for the tender design for the Tauranga Harbour Link Project which is estimated to be worth around $200 million. “I truly get the best of both worlds: running a business whilst retaining the technical challenges, which was the reason I trained as an engineer after all.” 
“The real highlight for me, however, is working with the people in Opus. The willingness to help and offer support and advice within Opus sets us apart from other businesses. We provide the best teams backed up by the rest of us and get to work on some really exciting schemes.”

Profile: Bob Hodges, Bridge Technical Leader, Rossett, United Kingdom

Bridge Technical Leader for the UK, Bob Hodges, is also responsible for the management of Rail Sector work within Opus. With over thirty-three years experience, his expertise in the design, inspection and assessment of bridges is used to lead the Bridge Team at Rossett, ensuring that the longstanding work for our clients continues to be delivered to a high standard.
As Project Director for the Opus work with Network Rail, he manages the ten year term commission to inspect and assess domestic bridges in the London North Western Territory. Additionally, Bob leads the Bridgeguard 3 Framework, which Opus has with Galiford Try Rail.  “The bridge construction is planned many months in advance and scheduled around possessions, when trains are not operating. One of Opus’ strength is that key dates are always met to enable the contractor to maximize the amount of work carried out in possessions."
With possessions driving the programme, the team at Rossett offers quality engineering solutions and details schemes to avoid disruption to rail services and road users.
Bob can reflect on a number of other achievements within this sector.  "On Christmas day in 2003 on the A500 scheme at Basford, near Crewe, I was able to watch, as the 195 metre five-span railway bridge, for which Opus carried out the initial preliminary design, was launched into position over the West Coast Main Line.’’

Profile: Dean Wendelborn, Project Engineer, London, United Kingdom

Having worked for Opus in New Zealand, Dean is now with Opus in the UK where he is seconded to the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham as Project Engineer on a streetscape improvement scheme.  The scheme is associated with the Westfield London development, a £1.6 billion shopping destination, which once complete, will be one of Europe’s largest. 
Dean can reflect on the differences between working in the industry in the two countries. “There are lots more companies that you have to liaise with and it can be very bureaucratic at times.” He’s seen a need for a greater degree of planning, time and money just to get projects up and running in the UK, “though no more complicated, there are simply more eyes to view the information and to get projects signed-off.”
Outside work, Dean is enjoying the huge choice of things to do in London and travel is playing an important part of his experience, finding it as cheap to travel to mainland Europe, as it is between the North and South Island. “Getting around in London almost solely revolves around public transport.  Pubs close early because the public transport system does too.” Though he admits to spending more time at the pub than he did back home!
Looking back on his time at Opus in NZ, Dean has some good memories and particularly enjoyed the time he spent touring the South Island while assisting with dam surveys and RAMM rating.

Profile: Dewi-Todd Jones, Graduate Structural Engineer, Bristol, United Kingdom 

Having recently conquered the Inca Trail in South America, Dewi is settling back in to work at the Bristol office’s new business premises in the north of the city.  "The Inca Trail was an amazing experience.  Opus helped with my sponsorship, as I was raising money for a local charity, so it was great to be able to wave the Opus flag at the final destination.”
Dewi completed a BEng degree in Architectural Engineering at Cardiff University and is now developing and refining his skills. He’s getting involved in an interesting mix of projects, including the new Redland House building in Bristol.  “It’s the first major project that I’ve been involved in right from the early stages, so I’m really looking forward to seeing it being built.”
Dewi is working with a range of local clients, including UBHT (United Bristol Health Trust) and The University of Bristol. 
"A highlight for me at Opus is the simple experiences that you don’t get in other 'desk based' jobs.  I recently had a meeting on the top of the University of Bristol Physics Block, with amazing views over the city.”  Dewi’s long-term plan is to become chartered with the help of Opus. “My short-term goal is to keep on learning. I’ve gained so much practical experience in the last nine months at Opus; I want to build on this, to become the best Structural Engineer I can.”

Profile: Dougal Mason, Engineering Geologist, Cardiff, United

Dougal joined Opus’ Wellington office in 2004 as a hydrologist.  Having studied geology at university, he later transferred to the office’s geotechnical section as the team was expanding rapidly due to an ever-increasing workload.  “I spent the next couple of years working on geotechnical investigations and assessments for a wide range of projects such as wind farms, motorway developments, waste water treatment plants and bridges.”
The lure of moving to the UK proved strong and Dougal transferred with Opus to the Cardiff office where he is currently involved with geotechnical and geoenvironmental assessments for new developments in and around South Wales. “Getting to grips with contaminated land assessments is a new challenge for me, as it’s not something that I came across in my previous role in Wellington, as well as learning how to pronounce words in Welsh!”
Outside work Dougal is enjoying the UK lifestyle, particularly travelling around the UK and Europe and seeing new sights. “Transferring to the Cardiff office has meant I can enjoy living overseas whilst remaining within Opus and gaining experience on new projects.”

Profile: Greer Lees, Team Leader - Sustainability Services, Wellington, New Zealand

Greer has spent the last two and a half years living and working in Thames. "I really enjoyed my there and it was a great place for me to develop my engineering career."  She transferred to Thames from the Auckland Office to get some contract supervision experience. A NZ$4.5m stormwater upgrade in the middle of Thames had just been awarded and there was a position available to do the supervision for that and to work on other projects.  Greer was involved in a wide variety of projects in Thames including stormwater, wastewater and water supply - from feasibility and consultation to construction.  She worked closely with clients and assisted them in their decision making.  She had opportunities for plenty of responsibility in a well supported environment and developed her skills in project management.  "By working in a smaller office I got involved with all elements of a project, where in a larger office these pieces may be done by more specialised or senior staff."  "I was also roped into playing touch rugby, indoor and outdoor soccer, and even business house lawn bowls for the Thames Coromandel District Council teams". Greer has now chosen to transfer to the Wellington Environmental Engineering team to get further experience. 

Profile: Jean Dupavillon, Drafting Manager, Sydney, Australia

Jean joined Opus in 1978 as an apprentice draftsman, while also undertaking a four year part time course at Sydney TAFE in which he successfully completed his Structural Engineering Certificate in 1981.  Jean then went on to become a senior structural design draftsman which provided opportunities to work on some notable projects using AutoCAD.  He then further progressed to the position which he now holds as Drafting Manager, a key role in managing projects, drafting staff and training of apprentices.  Jean is also involved in the Civil Engineering Cadetship induction course held in Wellington, New Zealand for 2 weeks once a year where new cadets sample the various disciplines Opus has to offer.  Jean brings over 29 years of experience to the company.  Significant projects Jean has worked on include the Quay Apartments, Circular Quay, the Network 10 Building Pyrmont, the Chinese Gardens Darling Harbour, the Sydney Olympics 2000, the Fijian Resort Pool, Waratah Mills (silo conversion to residential apartments) and the Chatswood to Epping Railway Line.

Profile: Joseph Thompson, Graduate Engineer, Papakura, New Zealand

Joseph joined Opus in July 2006 through our Canadian graduate recruitment programme.  "Working for Opus has been an excellent experience for me, both professionally and socially. I’ve been able to work on various projects in the Asset Management sector and in other areas of civil engineering as well. This valuable work experience has been accepted towards gaining my professional designation as a Civil Engineer."  Joseph has had the opportunity to work on a number of interesting and challenging projects, including the development of the Transportation Asset Management Plan for Manukau, the development of Engineering Quality Standards for Manukau, the development of the Quality Assurance Manual for Manukau.  Joseph has had experience in project management, report writing, road asset condition rating, footpath condition rating, quality assurance, data analysis and data manipulation for RAMM contracts for numerous local authorities. (Franklin, Papakura, Manukau, Auckland and North Shore).  "I truly believe that Opus embodies teamwork in all senses of the word. Although I’m working in a specific office, I feel that through the PIN network, sports teams and social events I’ve been able to forge strong working relationships as well as friendships throughout the Opus community. This has not only allowed me to grow as an engineer, but as a person as well."

Profile: Luke Meechan, Sector Leader UK - Transport Asset Management, London, United Kingdom

Luke joined Opus in 2005 and is the Sector Leader for Transport Asset Management (TAM) in the UK.  “We’re working with an ever expanding client base of local authorities developing and implementing highway and transport asset management plans – it’s an exciting time.”
Last year Luke travelled to New Zealand to attend the annual TAM conference held in Rotorua. “It was a great opportunity for Opus to discuss TAM services around the world, giving a valuable insight into what is happening globally and how we can support each other in delivering services.”
The strong link between the TAM teams in all four countries has been developed using the PIN Network. “The team in the UK has developed a good relationship with Opus people overseas - which brings the opportunity to share experiences in order to offer the best services to our clients.”
Luke recently completed training to become a Reviewer for the Institution of Highways and Transportation (IHT) Chartered Professional Review.  He is looking forward to mentoring and advising colleagues who are working towards chartership.

Profile: Robert Tutty, Road Asset Engineer, Wanganui, New Zealand

During Robert's 20 years with Opus the project he's predominantly been involved with is the management of the Transit New Zealand state highway network. This involves the management of 750km of highways in the central/lower western North Island. Typically this involves managing an annual budget of approx NZ$15m of highway maintenance work. On this project Robert was involved at all levels from the boy at the bottom to the man at the top and everything in between.  "The Wanganui office has a great environment along with a great bunch of people - technical assistance is available through the Opus PIN groups which enable questions and answers to be promptly shared with colleagues via email. This enables the collective knowledge of all our technical staff to be easily and quickly collated not just from within New Zealand but around the world." 
"Opus genuinely cares for their staff and is extremely forthcoming with opportunities for staff to better themselves."

Profile: Mark Valentine, Director, Rossett, United Kingdom

Mark currently works as the Director of the successful Opus office in North Wales, working as Project Manager for various schemes including a 10 year Structures Assessment Contract with Network Rail. This project requires asset inspections and load assessments for various bridges on some of the busiest rail networks in the UK, and has been secured through a strong client relationship, developed over the last ten years. In recent years he has also developed an increasing involvement with the ICE training schemes of Graduate Engineers, giving guidance where possible, and liasing with the ICE.  "I have had the opportunity to obtain and give advice with other Opus bridge engineers around the globe, through the Bridge PIN." 
"In my twelve years at Burton House I have been fortunate to enjoy a selection of interesting and challenging work. I have completed the design of numerous structures including road bridges, culverts, a small dam, footbridges and floating pontoons within marina developments in Kuwait. This valuable experience coupled with an ongoing expansion of responsibility, has provided excellent career progression. I aim to explore the opportunities for further development now available as an Opus employee and have appreciated their new perspective on business and training, which now gives a more focused direction to our efforts."

Profile: Richard Jarvis, Principal Engineer, Sydney, Australia

Richard's long career experience came from many public sector organisations, but always working with change and new ideas.  At Opus Richard has found a caring and supportive culture that fosters talent and empowers its people.  "The Opus culture assists in and encourages the developing of a personal level of contacts and relationships between people across the organisation, assuring a wide network of contacts, knowledge sharing, and support across the organisation."
"It is a culture that positively encourages new ideas and the sharing of knowledge.  If you strike a problem and you don't know how to deal with it, or are not sure about something, or if you just need a wider perspective, then you put out the word to colleagues via the intranet Practice Interest Networks, and they will give you a wide range of experience and perhaps nuances you may never have considered. And you see the replies to others' problems, and learn from the discussions and debates."  Richard has found the level of collaboration underwrites the achievement of excellence in the services we provide and generates confidence and pride in our work.

Profile: Sam Thornton, Graduate Engineer, Wellington, New Zealand

Sam Thornton joined Opus Wellington as a structural engineer in 2006 after graduating from the University of Canterbury with a BE (Hons) in Civil.  “I chose to work at Opus because it offered a friendly work environment and lots of different opportunities.  I am working in a supportive and friendly team who make the office a fun place to work. There is a good mixture of young graduates and experienced engineers in the office. Our office has a very social environment and I have had the opportunity to participate in numerous social and sporting activities throughout the year. Highlights include participating in a corporate multi-sport competition and being on the social committee helping to organise social events for the office.”
“Opus is very supportive towards its new graduates, I have a mentor who offers me support when I need it and I have had the opportunity to further my professional learning with numerous in-house training courses. There is also a lot of support from the experienced engineers in the office. Because of Opus’s global nature there are opportunities to move around and work in locations all over the world.”

Profile: Scott Wilson, Bridge Engineer, Rossett, United Kingdom

Bridge Engineer, Scott Wilson, has returned to Opus Rossett after spending a successful year in the Bridge team at Opus’ Wellington office in New Zealand. The placement enabled Scott to continue his professional development, whilst benefiting from the experience of living overseas. In the UK, Scott’s work focused on the strengthening and maintaining of bridges, however the expansion of infrastructure in NZ ensured his involvement in the design of new bridges.
“Getting involved in the design was a real learning curve, which included working on the 200m span Waikato River Crossing in Taupo. I was working in a small team of six, but there was a lot of interaction with the other office - so the size of the team didn’t affect the scale of the projects that we could undertake,” explained Scott.
Scott took several flights to attend project meetings, so there was plenty of scope for seeing more of the country. Christmas 2007 was spent enjoying the delights of the South Island and he took full advantage of Antipodean life, with trips to Australia and Fiji.
Scott got to know the city of Wellington well and also had time to get involved in social activity outside the office. “There was so much on offer - drinks after work every Friday, fun runs, trips to cinemas and even ski trips!”

Profile: Simon Jones, Asset Management Engineer, London, United Kingdom

Opus’ Asset Management Engineer, Simon Jones, recently won a bronze medal representing Great Britain, rowing in the Lightweight Quadruple Scull at the Lucerne World Cup Regatta in Switzerland.
Simon works for Opus on a part-time basis in the Transport Asset Management (TAM) team, working with local authority clients such as London Boroughs of Sutton and Haringey and Southampton City Council undertaking projects associated with the development of the asset management plan.
“I’m privileged to work for a company that’s fully behind my rowing career but still gives me the support that I need to develop professionally at Opus – it’s the best of both worlds.” Opus provides Simon with flexible working hours that fit around both training and races.  Opus has also funded a boat for his training sessions.
Following the result at the World Cup Simon and his crew have been selected for the GB Team to race at the World Championships in September in Munich. Simon began rowing whilst studying Civil Engineering at Imperial College, London.