Phil brings 50 years of industry experience and has a real love of training delivery. He has delivered training in most of the UK, as well as several European countries, even extended to Malaysia, Thailand, Hong Kong, and parts of the Middle East. This wide array of experience and exposure has given him an insight into all aspect of the industry, and sparked interest in all the different cultures of the world.
Background:
After successful completion of a business studies course at Burton on Trent Technical college, Phil pursued his dream of becoming a farmer, leading him to join an agricultural auctioneering company, spending 4 or 5 years in cattle markets, farm sales etc. (He did later realise his dream and farmed 60 head of red deer, sheep and some rare breed pigs, as well as later running a butchers shop and farmers market).
In 1976, under pressure to follow his parents, he moved to Burton on Trent, where his father was a mechanical fitter at Drakelow coal fired power station. Phil joined the station operations team, and followed the education and training programme there (at that time the power industry was a nationalised company called the Central Electricity Generating Board (CEGB)). From there, Phil worked across various roles at Cottom and Sutton Bridge power stations, before making the move into training at Empower Training (which later morphed into Eon Engineering Academy, then Uniper Engineering Academy). Rising to Lead Trainer, overseeing all thermal power plant operator training, plus having responsibility for the High Voltage training team too, it was clear Phil had found his calling.
After being made redundant at the end of July 2022, Phil was determined to continue his passion for training and pass down his knowledge, sparking the creation of Power Plant Training Ltd.
My Role at PPT:
Phil oversees all things training, ensuring that our course delivery is consistent, applicable and up to date. He will often develop new courses for the ever-changing world of power generation and have regular updates with our team of trainers, making sure the journey from new entrant into the power industry to being an able and competent team member of an operations team is achieved.
Once we have a client interested in a site-specific course, Phil leads communication to produce an agreed scope of work, then develop a course that contains all our clients’ needs in terms of learning outcomes, as well as ensuring accurate assessment at the end of the course.
Staying up to speed with the fast modernisation of the industry, Phil often delivers online training, as well as showcasing a 660MW simulator which gives operators a real feel of operating a power plant.
Outside of Work:
Phil choose to switch off through walking and hiking, with hikes ranging from the typical Lake and Peak District routes, all the way to challenging hikes such as mount Kinabalu in Borneo and mount Kilimanjaro. No stranger to a challenge, Phil has also completed the coast to coast walk and the inverness to John O'Groats coastal walk, with the walk from lands' end northwards next on the list. Not satisfied with the array of difficult hikes and treks, Phil also spends his downtime keeping fit through swimming and weight training (no doubt needed to complete some of the journeys listed above!).
