The Ultimate Job

If you ask any mechanical engineer what their dream job looks like, working on a Francis turbine overhaul at a hydro power station would be pretty high on the list. That's exactly where I found myself — and honestly it's the kind of opportunity that only comes from being in the right place at the right time and knowing the right people.

A Francis turbine is the type of water turbine used in hydroelectric power stations to generate electricity. They're massive, precision-engineered pieces of kit that run almost constantly — so when a major planned shutdown comes around every few years, a large team of specialists gets brought in to go through everything from top to bottom. This one ran for six months.

My role was part of the turbine rotor work — specifically a reshrink of the rotor keys. The old keys were removed and new ones fitted using a heat shrink process, where components are heated to expand, fitted together precisely, and as they cool they contract to form an incredibly tight and permanent fit.

But that was just one part of a much bigger job. Over the course of the shutdown there was machining, welding, working alongside other contractors and the station's own staff, working at heights, confined space work, operating around high voltage equipment, cleaning and prep, and sourcing and organising new parts. The kind of job that keeps you on your toes every single day.

It's not the sort of work that shows up on a website — it comes from building relationships in the industry over years and being someone people trust to show up and do the job properly. Grateful to have been part of it.