Real engineers

Rollercoasters are an adrenaline rush, but did you know that it's engineers putting the thrills and chills into your favourite rides?

Postgraduate student Bhavik Mehta explains how and why he came to study chemical engineering.

Zavier is an apprentice working on transforming the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park Stadium where TeamGB, Mo Farah, Usain Bolt and many other athletes won medals during the London 2012 Olympics.

About 70% of the Earth’s surface is covered by water, and engineers like Martin Chan help to create ways of travelling across it. From transporting products to different countries, to protecting the seas and helping get energy from under the sea-bed, Martin helps Rolls-Royce create the propellers, boats or products their customers need.

As an amputee engineering student Rishi Vegad acutely understands how engineering can make life better.

Angela Malynn is a mechanical engineer, bringing buildings to life so we can live and work in them - from offices to train stations to swimming pools

Lorena has studied and worked in Spain, Italy and now England. She thinks that creating a team of engineers from different backgrounds, with different opinions, is the best way to solve any complex engineering problem.

Dr. Charlotte Levy works in Probabilistic Safety Analysis to make sure reactors behave correctly.

Josh Mitchell is helping the COVID-19 efforts by getting 3D printers to African hospitals

Imogen is an apprentice working on roads and rails making sure the materials they are built of are still up to scratch.

James's apprenticeship led to real-world experience and his career as a refrigeration engineer.

A life-changing visit to Cape Canaveral set Stephanie on a new career path which saw her swap cruise ships for space science and engineering.

Allanah is a software engineer at BT, who switched to an apprenticeship in 6th form to learn directly from industry professionals.

His love of Lego and an inspirational talk by professional engineers led Noah to a career designing and building bridges.

Patrick has always loved DIY and design and technology. When his D&T teacher nominated him for a scholarship it started his design engineering journey.

Ellen Harper gets people with restricted mobility swimming through inclusive design.

Severin Skillman develops software applications and systems to help dementia patients.

RNLI lifeboat systems engineer, Rhodri Lewis, saves lives at sea through engineering

Civil engineers Bob and Marc came up with an ingenious way to keep otters safe!

Mechanical acoustics engineer Ben West ensures that the parts and systems of Bentley motor cars don’t create bad noises.

Wenda develops products and solutions for buildings that improve acoustics and sustainability.

Irene Serrano Gonzalez is a civil engineer and sustainability consultant in the Strategic Consultancy team at AECOM London

Dr. Tony Churnside is an audio engineer who works on BBC radio as a technologist and producer.

Teli Chinelis is a forensics engineer specialising in acoustics who works as an expert witness advising courtrooms in legal cases.

Hiba Khan keeps people's homes safe from flooding and erosion.

Special effects engineer Dave Cooper is on a mission to entertain.

Roshni helps design buildings so that people can escape safely in the event of a fire – and so that the fire brigade can fight the fire safely and effectively.

Working with psychologists, designers and engineers, Jack and his team looked at ways new tech can help with stress and anxiety.

Georgia Grace works offshore on the Race Bank wind farm near the Lincolnshire coast

Sarah Cain from Wrigley Company is an Engineer on a Mission to help people access safe food.

Oliver Jefferies from Mott MacDonald is an Engineer on a Mission to build transport links.

Sujith Kollamthodi from Ricardo is an Engineer on a Mission to help people get the right air quality.

Avery Bang from Bridges to Prosperity and Marion O'Dowd from Bechtel are Engineers on a Mission to help the developing world.

Samuel is a biomedical engineer working in the field of blood flow and blood pressure.

Philex is an electrical engineer working in ecological friendly electronics, collecting energy from thin air!

Maria Ferreira is a Civil Engineer at DP World London Gateway, a brand new port facility. She tells us how negotiation is a useful skill to keep things running!

Lauren is a water engineer who makes sure the liquid we pour from our taps is clean and safe to drink.

Lead Signalling Power Engineer on the UK Rail network, Abdul Rehman, tells us about his varied working day and how his Electronic Engineer mother was a career inspiration.

Phil Kirby is a Civil Engineer and has worked on projects not only on the computer but all around the world.

STEM ambassador Ayisha is keen to highlight that there is a place for women in the engineering sector.

Atkins structural engineer Christina Varnava tells us about the projects she works on, what she enjoys and how she first became interested in engineering!

What do you want to be when you grow up? Graduate chemical engineer Will Sharpe tells us how his dreams have changed slightly from aged five to 25.

Stephanie talks about how she is encouraging diversity in engineering and why it is so important.

Siu answers the top ten questions she gets about being an engineer.

Today was the day I re-enrolled for my 2nd year at Plymouth University… I’m starting to feel scared, but excited to be learning new engineering skills that will help me be a better engineer in the future.

Rachel Nixon tells us her four favourite things about her job.

Let’s get one thing straight, I am passionate about engineering – like really passionate, to the point that family members have been worried about how excited I get looking at the underside of a bridge

Maria Torres works for Wrigley's - she tells us how engineering got her involved in making gum.

"It’s only when people start asking me about my role that they appreciate how interesting and challenging my job is" says Network Rail engineer Louise Bungay

How my first eleven years in engineering helped me see the world and contribute to helping it.

From acrobatic elephants to Robbie Williams' giant head, James Solly tells us about how he's helped artists and creatives make some incredible structures - as well as how he got started in engineering!

A day in the life of graduate structural engineer James Rushton

Conor Graham talks about why he enjoys software engineering, and how you can get involved.

Brittany Harris explains how there are many people out there who want to help young people get into engineering and work abroad. All you need to do is ask.

Dealing with water and drainage infrastructure, Jack Huggins is a graduate engineer at Arup in their water sector in Cardiff.

Conor Lewis is a mechanical engineer working for Ørsted on an off-shore windfarm in Cumbria. Often at the very top!

Kaifer is a 25 year old engineering apprentice enrolled in an advanced multi-skilled apprenticeship for PepsiCo UK.

Stephanie is automotive engineer who loves all things car!

Nazia Ali is a graduate working in the Body Engineering department at Jaguar Land Rover. She's part of the team behind the distinctive shape of their vehicles, as well as the less obvious, but equally important things that go on inside the cars!

There were 1.65 billion train journeys made over the last year - that's a lot of passengers! And they all need to arrive safely and on-time, which needs a lot of engineering work behind-the-scenes.

Nuclear power stations provide a stable, low-carbon energy supply to power our homes and more. Engineering apprentice Victoria Brown explains what goes on inside the plant.

If you’re flying high across the sky to get to your destination, it’s thanks to engineers like Craig Johnstone.

A chance encounter changed Mimi-Isabella's career path towards becoming a Materials Engineer.

Daniel Newman is a graduate engineer at Rolls-Royce, working in the Aerospace sector.

Jemima Armstrong from GSK is an Engineer on a Mission to help find medical cures.

Ashley's Higher Apprenticeship Degree meant he got paid a salary while studying.

Professor Rebecca Shipley leads a team developing tools to understand the structure of cancerous tissues.

Holly tells us about her life studying and working in motorsport engineering, and the exciting and challenging times she has along the way.

Environmental engineer Serena Cunsolo is trying to stop microplastics from entering the ocean.

Geoffrey Morgan works for the United Nations promoting quality infrastructure for sustainable development.

Simon Crowther from Flood Protection Solutions is an Engineer on a Mission to help people stay safe in the home.

Hanna Sykulska-Lawrence can truly claim to be ‘reaching for the stars' by helping to send a NASA mission to Mars! 

Roma Agrawal is a structural engineer working at WSP Group in London. She's won a national award and worked on one of the most attention-catching buildings in the London skyline.

As an automation engineer, Ben Phillips gets to go behind the factory gates of West End musical production Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. We found out what working on a world-class theatre production involves.

Acoustic engineers make gigs, concerts and speeches sound great. Arthur works with architects to improve sound in new buildings through good design...

If you’ve ever wondered how blockbusters get to look so good, it’s down to the work of people like Eugenie von Tunzelmann who make ground-breaking visual effects. 

Think of the most exotic trip you can...India? Thailand? Maybe South America? What about outer space? Well, Pamela Melroy has been there, and now she's back to tell us all about it.

Samantha works with technology to make communication easier for those who might find it difficult.

Sean is building new hi-tech artificial football pitches that can be used all year round.

Choung Kyu Ryu from the Red Cross is on a mission to help people recover from disasters.

Vinita Marwaha Madill is a Space Operations Engineer.

Abbie Hutty talks us through her top ten misconceptions about a career in engineering and the ExoMars Rover Vehicle!

What's it like working as a globe-trotting sound engineer to the world's biggest pop band? David Martell is the man who has the answers.

We caught up with Glenn Ward from the BBC's The Apprentice, now an electronics engineer at Cadac, to see what kind of sound magic happens behind the scenes at your favourite show.

Mastering engineer Mandy Parnell puts the final touches to musicians' recordings to make them sound great, and has worked with The XX, Björk, Feist, Brian Eno and more.

Jennie's watching you... to help keep you safe on the roads! She's an apprentice Traffic Maintenance Engineer at Transport for London watching over London's traffic lights, signposts and junctions to keep everyone safe as they drive to work!

40% of UK carbon emissions come from the built environment, and building services engineers like Sally are helping make buildings more sustainable, as well as more comfortable places to live, learn or work, looking at heating, humidity, CO² levels and more.

If Willy Wonka was an engineer, he might have a job like Rob Sharpley. Rob has been working to increase the amount of chocolate that his factory can produce in an energy-efficient way.

Patty Srinath works in the Digital Sports department at the Nike headquarters. She uses her engineering knowledge and her love of sports to make brand new gadgets to track and measure our fitness!

Kimberley is a graduate at vehicle engineering, test and development company MIRA, keeping drivers safe on the roads through crash barrier testing and more.

Engineers work for the British Army - what do they do? Major Matt Smith tells us.

Structural engineers can play a crucial role in sports by building stadiums so that everyone can see the action. We spoke to Pete about his involvement with the Velodrome and other projects!

Hurricane Haiyan caused devastation in the Philippines in 2013 - find out how Alice Bond is using her engineering skills to help the local communities.

Regina’s an apprentice tunnelling engineer working on London’s Crossrail. London's a busy place and it needs Europe’s largest current construction project to keep it running smoothly! Regina took us 30 metres underground to tell us more.

Dr David James is a sports engineer and course leader for the Sports Engineering MSc at Sheffield Hallam University. Read about how he helps big sports companies, sports governing bodies and professional teams in their quest for cutting-edge sports equipment.

10 million car journeys, half a million cycle rides and six million bus trips every day - Kamlah tells us about the challenges of traffic control engineering for London!

How can engineers make some of our most popular products in an efficient, sustainable and environmentally-friendly way as possible?

Design engineer Lee sees engineering as a combination of science and art - find out why.

We spoke to Joshua Macabuag, earthquake and tsunami researcher, and search and rescue volunteer engineer.

We put ourselves in Asha's shoes, to find out what it's like to be a footwear production engineer at famous British boot brand Dr. Martens.

Cars and road vehicles are responsible for almost a quarter of greenhouse gas emissions in the UK in 2012 and Steve Large hopes to make a dent in this figure working as an engineer to create electric car charging points.

Chris has an ice cool engineering job making ice creams in Naples, in Italy - the home of modern ice cream. He helps make the swirling Cornetto patterns on a large scale for people in parks the world over.

Chris Gosling joined McLaren's graduate programme four years ago and now has a big input on the engineering of super-fast cars like the one in this video!

If you’re engineering parts for planes, trains or nuclear plants, how do you measure how well they’re working? How do you know if they’re feeling the strain in certain areas or might break? And how can you do this with objects made of metal, when it might not be obvious to the human eye?

Whether she’s chasing radio pirates or helping aeroplanes to land safely, no two days are the same for Sara Salim. Sara works as a Radio Spectrum Engineer for Ofcom, making sure we get crisp and clear radio, television and mobile phone signals. Tomorrow’s Engineers spoke to Sara about the buzz of engineering and the glamour of her job behind the scenes.

Richard Kirkland got into engineering through his love of tinkering with mountain bikes, motorbikes and restoring cars. He got into his current role as an Electrical Maintenance Engineer through an apprentice with a well-known international car manufacturer...

From the Arctic Monkeys to Ed Sheeran and the Manic Street Preachers, Guy Massey is the sound engineer recording some of the best in the business.

James works as a sports engineer at the International Tennis Federation in south-west London. He helps to keep a balance between tradition and technology in this forward-thinking sport, covering balls, rackets, court surfaces and footwear. We took a trip down to their testing lab to find out more.

Engineers like Drew work in developing countries, helping generate local electricity, creating access to clean water, developing basic transport and more. Find out how Drew uses his knowledge and practical engineering skills to bring power to the people of a remote village in Malawi…

Jaz uses her mechanical engineering skills to find out where supermarkets, retailers and businesses can make changes to become more energy efficient and environmentally friendly.

Rory Hadden investigates how fires ignite, spread and how they can be extinguished. This research is then used to save lives by creating safer buildings for us to live and work in.

Ian Rawlings has to use all his engineering experience to keep trains moving on the London Underground as well as updating the trains, tracks and signalling systems at the same time - a difficult, important and rewarding job!

Lucy is a London-based visual effects artist who helps bring the biggest Hollywood films to the silver screen at VFX House, Double Negative.

Engineers working in a chocolate factory, like Aoibheann Hurley, design, assemble and improve production lines to make great chocolate on a large scale.

After finishing school, Josh Brough decided he wanted to earn and learn at the same time. He took an apprenticeship with Siemens and now works on the electronic and electrical devices that help drive rollercoasters!

Walking, running and moving are things that most people can luckily take for granted much of the time. But, if you have an injury or disability this can make these activities more difficult. This is where rehabilitation engineering comes in. Everybody is different and engineers like Louise help design equipment that will work for a particular person.

We use energy for electricity and fuel every day and Hani Baluch helps power all our energy needs. Hani Baluch works out in the field as a graduate petroleum engineer for BP, putting safety procedures into place to maximise oil and gas production from wells.

Engineers like Yasmin Ali work out how to get oil and gas from deep out of the ground, often from challenging locations like the middle of the sea, and back onto land where we want to use it to power our televisions, computers and more!

Eloise is responsible for things that go bump on the radio, or bark, or crash! As a sound engineer she uses the latest recording technology to make radio drama sound realistic!

When many people think about London, they think about the famous River Thames.

Behind every great gig or festival like Glastonbury, there are people working to make sure the audience hear the band in the best possible way. Some of these people are called live sound engineers.

Adil Kadar is a chemical engineer whose challenge at work is to help keep people smelling fresh across the whole world - not an easy task!

Jasmine Mucenieks takes new chemical formulations for hair care products fresh from the lab and works out the best way to produce these on a large scale. This is to make new products ready for the mass-market, so you can buy them from a shop near you!