Electrical Power Protection and Plant Commissioning Engineer Review

Applying training out in the field by testing and maintaining high voltage equipment (including circuit breakers and transformers) and this equipment's protection systems. A large part of the job also involves managing health and safety. This is paramount in this field of work but is managed expertly, possibly making safer than driving a car.

I have learnt a tremendous amount about how electricity is generated, transmitted and distributed. I have also developed a wide range of practical skills that help fulfil the duties of my role. This includes piratical hand and tool skills, in depth electrical and power knowledge, and an extended understanding of health and safety.

Overall the programme is very enjoyable. The people are amazing. The culture at National Grid and the nature of the work creates an amazing work environment. The only drawback of the programme is the large work load, balancing all your responsibilities, which at times can lead to high levels of stress.

Overall there is great effort to ensure that your development in the programme is conducted at a steady pace. Unfortunately, due to the time it takes to develop curtain skills, knowledge and authorisations, there are times where you have to solve problems when you don't have all the tools for, at that moment in time.

There are both company wide support and programme specific support which is made aware and available to you from the start of the programme. The only room for improvement would be the sudden change of communication, from those who provide support, once you enter the second year. This means you have to be more proactive, which is not a bad thing, but it can be a bit of a shock at the time.

The training provider was a mixed bag and depended on the specific lecturer for each module. Most trainers would go above and beyond when provide support making that module both enjoyable and easier to manage. While on the other hand, some lecturers provide little to no support which made their modules far less enjoyable and far more stressful.

The overall qualification provides the background knowledge to everything done as practical work in the programme. In addition to this, some modules even covered specifics to the job role, which made developing those skills far easier.

National Grid does provide some extra-curricular activities through "Grid for Good", however, these activities did not get put forward very often and when they do, there is usually only room for one or two people.

Yes

Overall, it is a challenge to find issue with the programme. The value of the qualification, work place experience, health and safety training, and on site networking all make the programme well worth it in the long run. The programme also gets your foot in the door for starting a career in National Grid or any other power engineering company.

The National Grid website is a treasure trove of information and when combined with a small amount of internet research on "Electrical Substations" you can gain a real edge in the interview process. If successful with joining the programme, planning will be your best tool to manage the large work load. To do this successfully, plans as early as possible and discuss with managers to get access to planning tools ASAP.