A New Venture...

After working for 14 years for the same employer and having had some fantastic experiences and opportunities it is all coming to an end. Our site is being closed down and everyone will be going their separate ways. It has been great to work with many talented and genuinely lovely people over this time and I have many fond and lasting memories. I shall especially miss working closely with my manager Stewart who has been a mentor and a friend for the last 16 years.

Framing what has happened in my personal life during my time at work makes me realise how much has happened in that time. I learned to drive, got married, had kids, got divorced, moved house four times and got married again, crashed a car, learned to climb, learned to love, learned more and more about me and my place in the world.

So what next? I'm starting my own business.

I don't think anyone enjoys working for the corporate machine. The inevitable bureaucracy and inflexibility that permeates some larger organisations places barriers in the way of enjoying the work that as engineers we trained for and work hard to achieve proficiency at - finding solutions to technical problems. Investigating, testing, trying, and eventually solving that problem that has had you stumped for the last week is one of the best feelings I know. That ideal has to be worth pursuing.

The goals are to do interesting work, to help companies get their products to market and achieve their goals, and to have fun in the process. As such I'm setting up Unit 3 Compliance, an EMC consultancy and test lab, in Bradford. This will help organisations that don't have Electro-Magnetic Compatibility experience or facilities get access to high quality pre-compliance testing and advice.

Electronics friends: If you know of anyone with an EMC test requirement or that is having EMC problems then send them my way - there's a beer in it for you next time I see you ;-)

I'm really excited and can't wait to get started on this massive new project!