People News

Gearing up for a bright future.

Adele is a Graduate Engineer who joined our Cardiff office in September.

My engineering journey…

…started when I was 15. Originally, I wanted to be a teacher but, at a careers fair, my mum pointed me towards Balfour Beatty. They offered me a week’s work experience and I haven’t looked back since! I volunteered there in my summer holidays for two years and I was then given a paid summer internship during Sixth Form.

It felt great working at such a young age. Most of my peers had only just started a paper round!

 I studied…

…at the University of Portsmouth and read for a Meng Mechanical Engineering degree. I did a summer internship and a placement year with BAE Systems and I really enjoyed the whole experience.

When I was looking for a graduate position…

…I came across Hoare Lea and got very excited with what I saw. Combining both construction, defence and other sectors I was interested in, it was the perfect fit. I was successful with my application, joined the Cardiff office and started in the September after my degree. The rest is history!

In my role…

…I’ve had the chance to work on a new local social housing project, hotels, residential buildings in London and a local primary school refurbishment. It’s all helping shape me as an engineer and give me some great experience. There is something amazing about watching a project develop from simple designs on paper to reality.

Recently, the urgent Welsh field hospitals became the new focus for us in Cardiff. I was working on the Principality Stadium, now the Dragon’s heart hospital – the exposure I had to the fast pace of the project was an important learning curve.

As a graduate engineer…

…I’m really looking forward to continuing to grow my skillset and develop my technical knowledge in a variety of sectors. I’m hoping, with the IPD scheme we have here, to achieve chartered status.

My work in STEM…

…started in 2016. I visit primary schools to talk about engineering and try to inspire the next generation through a variety of different activities.

A great example was the Cardiff Commitment scheme called “Open Your Eyes Week”. We used VR headsets to show children all the engineering possibilities for buildings and the kids loved it! We had a quote from one saying that it was “the best lesson ever!”

I also work with 1Million Mentors. This organisation pairs students with professionals who can help encourage and support them. This could be help with college applications, CV writing or simply just career advice.

STEM is important to me…

…because it promotes something that I am passionate about. As a woman in engineering, I’m very keen to change the stats that show that the UK has got a shortfall of engineers and I want to tackle this head on.

In my spare time…

…. I am a Brownie unit leader but, unfortunately, I had only just started before lockdown, so I am looking forward to starting this again. When I was at university, I was part of the gymnastics and trampolining society and used to compete. I’d love to get back into this again.

There’s a new addition to my family, a puppy called Barney who’s a true bundle of energy. Sunday afternoon walks are now much more fun and much more energetic!