James Lightfoot shares his progression from completing a PhD to driving innovation in renewable energy at SSE Renewables…
Why did you choose the Bristol Composites Institute for your studies?
Coming to the of end my undergraduate degree in biochemistry I was very keen to explore a career change. After a long discussion with Paul Weaver in Queens Building, I was enthused by the high-impact nature of the R&D, the industrial links within the department and the commitment to invest in skills and training from EPSRC. BCI gave me the opportunity to retrain with a cohort, which gave me the chance to learn and develop with a group of like-minded PhD students. 
What research area did you specialise in whilst you were here?
I was in the inaugural year of what was called the “ACCIS DTC” in 2009. I specialised in composite manufacturing and did a PhD on defects formed during the manufacturing process of propeller blades, under the supervision of Kevin Potter and Michael Wisnom and GE Aviation. My PhD included elements of manufacturing process modelling and lots of hands-on manufacturing. I also learned to layup a Dowty propeller blade which was a fantastic experience.
After leaving the BCI where did you go?
I spent three years at Frazer-Nash Consultancy where I spent much of my time carrying out finite element modelling of metallics in aerospace gas turbines and composites for the automotive industry. I then spent almost seven years at the National Composites Centre (NCC) as a Technical Programme Manager. At the NCC I was lucky enough to lead the renewable energy team and portfolio, meaning I worked alongside the likes of Europe’s biggest turbine manufacturers to help them make better turbine blades. This included 3D printing of continuous fibre composites, digital twins of blade curing and developing composite turbine towers for floating offshore wind.
What are you currently working on and what do your future plans look like?
I’ve since moved to SSE Renewables and have led on sustainable innovation for over two years, covering onshore and offshore wind, hydroelectric power and battery storage. I still work with composites, though I spend most of my time trying to recycle our blades, which can be over 100m in length and over 50 tonnes in mass which isn’t particularly easy. With the diversity of our business I’ve had to learn a lot, from making our onshore wind foundations more sustainable, through to decarbonising offshore wind with zero emissions vessels. Working in renewable energy is fantastic and I’ll likely stay in the industry for some time.
How did the BCI prepare you for work outside of academia?
As I retrained to composites in the first year of the doctoral training centre my time at BCI helped me to rapidly understand new concepts, tools and techniques. This was critical to picking up the broad range of projects whilst working at Frazer-Nash. The massive range of composites work, from process modelling to making and breaking 3m wingboxes, gave me a huge breadth of knowledge of experience for me to lean on whilst at the NCC. My PhD also helped me develop transferable skills, the most important being talking to a range of stakeholders about very technical ideas, which is essential in my professional life.