Even though many of our graduates will have progressed in their careers since completing a case study, they are still of interest to students who wish to gain an understanding of the world of work.

R&D, melt and cast specifications, failure analysis, continuous improvement, technical service for customers, collaboration with sister companies.

Review of previous days reports and records - heat treatment, UT reports, NCRs. Determination of what special actions are required on individual rolls

The R&D work requires constant attention to achieve targets and is very rewarding when it goes to plan.

Also, the variability in the work is high as some issues take precedence. I like the autonomy where I have to decide how to allocate my time

Managing multiple projects and issues requires the full team.

I enjoy metallurgy and particularly the development of new materials

Metallurgy, failure analysis, phase transformations, interpretation of available data

Manual handling, grinding wheels,
Informally: the background to our existing grades, interpretation of specifications, previous manufacturing and service issues,

2005-2008 Metallurgist at Halco - producing rock drilling equipment

2008-2011 Mills Metallurgist and then Quality Manager at Thamesteel - a mini mill producing reinforcing bar and structural bar products

2011-present, Senior Metallurgist at UESUK

2012 - Became a Chartered Engineer with IOM3

2 week course on ultrasonic testing

Generally, metallurgy forms part of technical departments and so is linked to quality and inspection. Having skills or experience in these areas is important. Also, try to gain experience of working in heavy industry - it does not suit everyone.

University gives you a broad knowledge but its only learning on the job that fills in the gaps.