Gaspard Mendy

When did you join Atkins?

November 2007

What’s your background?

I graduated with a MEng in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Liverpool.

Why did you join Atkins?

I was attracted to Atkins because of the size and reputation of the company. Atkins works in a wide range of businesses so I can request a secondment to another business area if I need a new challenge. I was also interested in joining the oil & gas sector and working in London.

What projects have you worked on?

I have worked on a broad range of projects. For example, I have worked with an Atkins team and the Health & Safety Executive to perform a review and appraisal of current structural integrity monitoring technologies for offshore applications.

What did it involve?

I researched and helped assess new edge methods for continuously and remotely monitoring subsea platform structures for defects such as through-thickness fatigue cracks.

Tell us about some other significant projects that you’ve worked on

I’ve worked on an interesting range of projects, including fatigue life assessment of a wave screen device, structural assessments of the topside structure and deck capacity of offshore platforms and finite element analyses of offshore helidecks.

What are you working on at the moment?

I am performing a cost, time and resource estimate for a piece of finite element analysis work. I am also compiling a response to an Acoustic Emission report we have just received for a major platform in the North Sea. Acoustic Emission is a technique used to monitor fatigue cracks in subsea structures.

How have you benefitted from Atkins’ Graduate Development Programme?

I attended a two-day graduate development event with graduates from around the business. We worked with professional career development coaches and Atkins’ senior managers to develop our skills and set career development goals.

What did you get out of it?

The objective was to help develop our ‘soft’ skills and get us thinking about setting short and medium term career development goals.

What other training have you had since working here?

I attended a technical report writing course as well as a steel design and assessment course in my second year. They were very useful and have resulted in improvements in my technical knowledge and the quality of my work.