Kevin joined the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory straight from school as an apprentice. On completing his apprenticeship, he worked as a technician for the Central Laser Facility and a design engineer for Johnson Matthey and Lombard Medical before returning to RAL to work on the ISIS Target Station 2 project.
He joined the Nimrod beamline design team, taking the lead for the project as it neared completion, and then moved to be the lead engineer for ChipIr during the second phase of TS2. “In this role, I discovered that I preferred working in a role focussed on the big picture, rather than the detail," he explains. This prompted a move into project management, and the ISIS accelerator division.
When the work on the European Spallation Source began, he led the design of the beamlines that would go on to be built by ISIS, before moving to a group leader position. Now, as ISIS Instruments Project Lead, Kevin has oversight of all new ISIS instrument projects, including those that are part of the Endeavour programme. His role includes the budget, outline technical specifications and programme governance.
“Having taken the ESS instruments through concept phase, seen the TS2 instruments to completion, and worked on the build of individual instruments, I'm now able to combine all these experiences in my work on Endeavour," says Kevin.
The programme will push the boundaries of what will be technically possible to deliver, and that's a risk that Kevin must manage. As part of the planning stage, he inputted into the technical requirements to ensure the proposed instruments could feasibly be built. “We're now implementing new designs into smaller upgrades to existing ISIS instruments that will enable us to develop the skills and technologies needed for Endeavour," he explains. “For example, the new detectors for SXD and IMAT are the predecessors for those needed for LMX and WISH-2.
Kevin has now been at ISIS for over twenty years; “I just really like working here! The people are interesting to work with, and the flexibility means I get to have a good work/life balance. I've also made the most of all the opportunities to do different, interesting things, such as the STFC Accelerated Development Programme, which gave me a chance to work with people from all levels of the organisation."
He adds; “the best part of my job is working with the many skills that STFC staff have and being able to utilize this to solve the next generation of engineering challenges."
