Young Member Visionary 2017: Stephen Welsh
Stephen Welsh MEng AMIMechE is a Design Engineer working with TechnipFMC. He graduated with Distinction from Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh in 2016 with a Master’s Degree in Industrial (Mechanical) Engineering.
At university, Stephen was winner of the Institution’s Project Award and the BP Prize for best MEng group design. On being named Young Member Visionary, Stephen said: “I am delighted to receive this award, it is the biggest achievement in my career to date. I know it will only motivate me further to continue working hard on my development.
“I am inspired to be the best I can be by my family and my girlfriend. I want to repay my family for everything they did for me growing up, and to give my girlfriend and I the best possible life I can.”
Stephen followed the ‘Engineer of the Future’ programme at FMC Technologies, a five-year undergraduate programme which develops professional industrial competence alongside academic study. It aims to produce ‘work-ready graduates’ who can enter a role of responsibility after graduating from university.
Stephen said, “Through this programme I did a condensed modern apprenticeship followed by a Master’s degree. At the same time I was gaining engineering experience, working within the Well Completion Systems product line at FMC Technologies. I am now following a Monitored Professional Development Scheme towards chartership with the Institution of Mechanical Engineers.
“I have moved into a full-time role as a Design Engineer at TechnipFMC. My current role includes working on project tenders within the Project Engineering discipline, aiming at winning new business for the company. My current focus is reducing cost on an important project tender in the Norwegian sector.”
In a recent prototype build, Stephen gathered and led a team of peers, demonstrating great direction, openness to innovation and helping support the development of trainees. He implemented impressive ways of working, delivering the prototype on time and using only 67% of the budget.
He received excellent feedback from a cross-section of company areas, commending him for commitment, effort, customer satisfaction and the high quality of work that his team produced.
Taking this experience further in his new role, Stephen organises and leads feedback sessions with multiple functions from across the business, where he presents an overview of the prototype and gathers input on potential design improvements and cost reductions and is implementing these to the design. This exercises his strong interpersonal skills to collaborate, encourage innovation and enhance the business’s position on a crucial project.
Michael Waterston, Stephen’s MPDS mentor, said that “Stephen's passion and commitment towards his development is second to none.” He added: “Stephen has created a positive atmosphere by encouraging collaboration and innovation from everyone to achieve our business strategy. In each instance where Stephen is tested he performs to an ever-exceedingly high standard, never failing to impress senior management, and has been promoted to Design Engineer in half the usual time for his efforts.”
Stephen embraces opportunities to uphold the best standards of engineering practice. He appeared in a company video, where he spoke about examples of exhibiting the company’s core values. He was nominated to lead the risk assessment team, where he co-ordinates the team's contribution to HSE events.
Stephen volunteers with his local Young Members Panel (YMP), helping to plan and facilitate local events aimed at helping students transition into industry. He has scheduled a visit to his former primary school to talk to children about his path to engineering, which the school’s leaders agree is a valuable opportunity to inspire the engineers of the future.