After graduating in 2001, Emer worked in research at ADM, a food ingredients company in Ringaskiddy, Co Cork, investigating ingredient production processes.

To specialise in the pharmaceutical validation industry, Emer moved to GlaxoSmithKline, in Currabinny, Co Cork, as a validation engineer. In May, 2004 she moved to Genzyme in Waterford, a pharmaceutical and biotechnology facility which manufactures and packages tablets. Emer validates the plant’s new equipment, processes and control systems. “I verify and document that equipment, instrumentation and processes are installed, operate and perform as designed or specified,” says Emer.

“While my degree is not linked directly to my career choice, it has provided a very broad base for me, providing a background in microbiology, chemistry and technology. Validation is the type of job where you learn as you go along and then use this knowledge and experience in new projects.”

What’s so brilliant about your job?

“My job allows me to work on projects all over the plant, which means that you are continuously involved on new processes and products. My technical knowledge is always increasing and always being challenged as I have to apply knowledge from past experience to a new piece of equipment or process.”

What do you like least about your job?

“There is very little I dislike about my job. If pushed, I would say that the pressure of a deadline is never pleasant, but there is always a great sense of satisfaction when one is met and a project has been satisfactorily completed.”

How do you spend a typical day?

“My day typically starts at 8am but I usually come in earlier than that to go through mail and sort out my schedule. It is vital that you are organised as you need to fit in your day’s work around meetings and other issues which might arise during the day. ”

My works varies from day to day; it depends on what stage of a project you are at. If I am in the process of creating a protocol I will be based at my desk. But if I am executing a protocol, I will be based in the plant at the equipment and might not get to my desk at all.”

Does your work require a lot of equipment?

“Yes. My work involves directly working on equipment and instrumentation. This could vary from filling line equipment to tablet hardness testers and moisture analysers.”

Are you a science/engineering/technology nerd?

“Not at all! I do have a big interest in food and nutrition which stems from my degree but other than that, no.”

Did science/engineering/technology give you a buzz at school?

“Science would always have been my preferred choice over business studies at school. But languages would have been a close second. We had good facilities, with well equipped labs, which helped to foster an interest in the sciences. It’s always easier when you see something happen in front of your eyes as opposed to just reading about it in a text book.”

What has been the highlight of your career to date?

“It hasn’t happened yet… I hope!”

Masters of Engineering (Chemical Engineering) at Queen’s University Belfast, 1997

Career snapshot

His engineering career has taken Paul Phillips far from his native Kells, Co Meath, where he attended Kells Community School. After a master’s degree in engineering he began work with the multinational pharmaceutical company Merck Sharp & Dohme in 1997.

He has worked in manufacturing at the company, acting as a supervisor and team leader. This gave him a good knowledge of the equipment and processing carried out in its plants. He has also been involved in improving the company’s output through process development and introducing new processes. His latest project brought him to Singapore as part of a major technology transfer project.

“This has given me the opportunity to coordinate a large complex project and work in a cross functional environment with people from around the world,” he says. “The project involved a lot of preparation work during the last year, which is now culminating in a plant demonstration in Singapore. This has given me a lot of exposure to different technologies, business processes and cultures.”

What’s so brilliant about your job?

“The variety of the job is immense. Every day is different, plus I have had the opportunity to work in the process development and technology transfer side of the business, as well as hands on manufacturing supervision.”

How do you spend typical day?

“I currently start my day at 8:00 and read through emails from abroad that have come in over night. Then I plan my day to ensure that the critical items get completed. A standard day can involve observing production in the field, resolving technical issues, and preparing technical documentation.”

“There is always a constant drive to improve and streamline business systems within the plant. This can involve interesting discussions on a wide range of issues, resulting in improvements in the way we conduct our business.”

Does your work require a lot of equipment?

“Working in a pharmaceutical environment involves working with a large range of equipment, from lab scale glassware to full scale reactors. While there are many areas associated with the pharmaceutical industry, working in bulk manufacturing involves developing a working knowledge of plant equipment from reactors, pumps and condensers to temperature indicators and level sensors etc. It also involves working with computer control systems that are used to control automated production.”

Did science/engineering/technology give you a buzz at school?

“I enjoyed all facets of science at school, including chemistry, maths, physics and technical drawing. For this reason I chose chemical engineering as it draws on a wide range of science and engineering skills, and opens up a wide avenue of areas in which to work.” What has been the highlight of your career to date? “The opportunity to work in different places around the world with a wide variety of people. In college I was fortunate to spend summers working in an oil refinery in Argentina, as well as chemical plants in the US and in England. This has continued since joining Merck Sharp & Dohme, where I have had the opportunity to work in the US and currently Singapore.”

Learn more

Merck Sharp & Dohme in Ireland

Education

Imelda Egan - Air pollution scientist

• BA (Mod) Microbiology, Trinity College Dublin (1993)
• Masters in Biological Sciences, Dublin City University (1996)
• Diploma in Environmental Engineering, Trinity College (1999)

Career snapshot

Imelda Egan develops techniques to deal with air pollution. She works for Bord na Mona, an organisation once best known for turf briquettes. Over the past decade, however, Bord na Mona has also built up a range of environmental services, many based on technologies that it has invented and developed commercially.
Imelda is centrally involved in this. Over the last five years, she has been named as co-inventor of two patented air treatment processes. The team she works in, Clean Air Solutions, was shortlisted for the All-Ireland Innovation Awards 2002 and received a commendation.

Bord na Mona exports its services to Britain, France, Italy, Spain and Portugal, as well as working in Ireland. So Imelda’s job involves a lot of travel, although some of it is to such glamorous locations as wastewater treatment or animal rendering plants.
There are two sides to her work: developing new solutions and supporting them in use. This involves:

• Working on new processes to deal with air pollution
• Going on-site to examine air emissions and odorous processes
• Devising solutions through pilot trials
• Putting biological air treatment systems in place
• Supporting the systems in use

It is a demanding and satisfying job, making the world a cleaner and less-smelly place.

What’s the best thing about your job?

“I like the variety of my job, in that I could be on site in France one week and the next be in the office designing a full abatement system for an odour or emission application. The team members in Clean Air Solutions work together. If something comes up, everyone pulls together to get it solved as quickly as possible.”

What do you like least about your job?

“There are times, particularly in winter, when the last thing you want to do is to go outside to a cold site!”

How do you spend a typical day?

“I could be up early and on the road to a site to undertake monitoring. If we have a pilot trial going, we could be visiting that. Or I could be in the office. I spend a lot of time on the phone discussing potential solutions, or arranging someone to monitor a site.”

Are you a science nerd?

“I don’t think so. I like all aspects of my job, including the commercial aspects. My qualifications in science allow me to do a job which is varied and interesting, but I leave it at the gate when I go home.”

Did science give you a buzz at school?

“I did chemistry and physics at school, but wasn’t that good at either really. It wasn’t until I went to college that some of my courses really woke me up to the unbelievable possibilities that science offers in every area of life.”

Want to find out more?

Learn about the wide range of Bord na Mona’s business activities

Find out more about environmental engineering at TCD

(Photo of Imelda Egan used with the kind permission of Bord na Mona)

Electronic engineer John Breslin (31) was born in Dublin and grew up in Fanore, Co Clare. He went to school in Lisdoonvarna. Since qualifying, he has held a range of Johnresearch and teaching posts.

His current job is in one of the most exciting areas of computer science – working on the Semantic Web project at the Digital Enterprise Research Institute (DERI) at NUI Galway. (The Semantic Web is the next generation of the World Wide Web, intended to create much more meaningful connections between pieces of information.)

Among the awards he has collected are a Golden Spider and a Zeddy web award for the online community boards.ie, and a prize paper award from the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE).

Degrees

BE (Electronics), NUI Galway, 1994 and PhD, NUI Galway, 2002

Career snapshot

He began his career in 1994 with the Power Electronics Research Centre at NUI Galway, where he worked on computer techniques to improve the design of electrical transformers.

From 2000 to 2004, he lectured at the Department of Electronic Engineering at NUI Galway. He taught students in both electronic and computer engineering subjects ranging from radio communications to digital logic.

Currently, he’s a postdoctoral researcher at DERI, researching social networks and community portals on the Semantic Web.

What’s so brilliant about your job?

“I’ve been fascinated by the development of online communities on the Web since I co-founded one of Ireland’s largest community sites (boards.ie) as a hobby in 2000. Boards.ie started life as a single discussion forum with a handful of members, and now spans hundreds of diverse forums with thousands of members.

“My interest has evolved from this part-time hobby to become the focus of my research at DERI: social networking on the Semantic Web.

“The idea of a Semantic Web – a semantically-annotated resource shared by humans and computers – was proposed by the inventor of the current Web, Tim Berners-Lee. It will make it easier for humans to find information than it is with today’s search engines, and will allow computers to automatically process and integrate the information available on the Web.

“The growth of social networking sites since 2003 has been phenomenal, attracting significant publicity and venture capital as a result. These are community sites where users can maintain an online network of friends or associates for social or business purposes: whether you’re looking for a job, reconnecting with old friends, moving to a new area, or dating. “I’m working on developing such a social networking site with an Irish focus, building on my previous experience in online communities.”

What do you like least about your job?

“Deadlines (for papers, proposals and deliverables)! But then again, you have deadlines in nearly all jobs and few people like them.”

How do you spend a typical day?

“My first task each day will be to check email. Typical tasks would include researching and writing technical papers; reviewing and reading other people’s papers; putting together proposals for projects and funding; programming and web development; participating in meetings of clusters and committees; and attending seminars given by researchers on a wide range of topics (a great way to learn quickly about a new area).”

Does your work require a lot of equipment?

“No – just computers!”

Are you a science nerd?

“I am a bit of a technology freak – I spend a lot of free time developing web sites or fiddling with some computer or electronic gadget. My latest home gadget is called the DreamBox. This sounds like a gaming console, but it is actually a satellite receiver.

“You can stream television from it to your PC, record to its hard disk (like Sky+), and download or upload multimedia files through its network connection. This is one of many examples we have of where communications and computing technology is converging (like mobile phones and portable media players).

“I also have a strong interest in the convergence between electronics and the Semantic Web: the World Wide Web Consortium’s CC/PP recommendation, and physical hyperlinks for electronic devices.”

Did science give you a buzz at school?

“In secondary school, I took all available science subjects (Physics, Chemistry and Biology), with some outside normal hours. I really enjoyed these subjects, and loved any chance I had to use the single Apple Lisa computer we had in school (not just Pong, but BASIC too)!

“My earliest scientific memory in primary school was making a circuit to turn on and off a light: using a battery, torch bulb and an old switch I cut off from a worn-out electric blanket.”

What has been the highlight of your career to date?

“The highlight of my career has probably been the IEEE prize paper award I and my co-authors received for a journal publication in PELS Transactions in 2000. Each time a publication is accepted for a peer-reviewed journal or conference it is a mini-highlight, because your work has been reviewed by those foremost in your research area and deemed to be worthy of notice by others.”

Want to find out more?

Visit John Breslin’s home page

Check out DERI Galway

Anne Graham - Civil Engineer with Dublin City Council

Career Snapshot

Anne is executive manager of the Events Department in Dublin City Council. This new department encourages and manages events in the city centre outdoor public spaces. It is a broad role, that may involve:

• Procuring new events for the city centre
• Supporting an event financially
• Ensuring that it is run safely

She has worked in the Dublin local authorities as a civil engineer, including the drainage and roads departments. In roads, she was involved in the design of the Dublin Port Tunnel. In 2000 she moved into a managerial role in the city council and worked in the department responsible for corporate policy and business planning.

Anne was then appointed project manager for redeveloping Dublin’s O’Connell Street area. She says: “This role included the management of construction of the Spire and the new street design, as well as the promotion of development in tax-designated sites. I have worked on other urban regeneration projects such as the Heuston Station area and the Markets area of the city.”

Background Info

Anne is from Dublin and went to school in St. Louis High School, Rathmines.

Education

• Degrees B.E. (Civil), UCD, 1985

• M.Eng.Sc. (Transportation Engineering), UCD, 1996

• MBA (Local Government), DCU, 2003

What’s so brilliant about your job?

“What I like most about my job is the variety of work that it entails. Every day is different and the opportunity for continual change and learning is always there. I like meeting people from all walks of life and I particularly enjoy making the city centre an attractive and enjoyable place to be. As a senior manager, I also like being in a position to influence the development of the city council and the decisions in relation to my own department.”

What do you like least about your job?

“There is nothing that I particularly dislike about my work. The hardest part is public consultation because of the number of stakeholders involved with local authorities.”

How do you spend a typical day?

“Given that my department is new, I have a lot of staff meetings to develop policy and give direction in decisions on the use of public spaces. I have consultation meetings with other statutory agencies and event production companies before events. I also meet other public agencies in the city that are providing events to develop partnerships with them.”

Does you work require a lot of equipment?

“No just a computer and a phone.”

Are you a science/engineering/technology nerd?

“No, as an engineer in a local authority I tend to know a bit about a lot of different aspects of civil engineering without becoming an expert in any particular area. Although I’m not working in an engineering field now, I still keep up to date on new developments through my membership of the Institution of Engineers of Ireland. Outside of work, I’m kept busy with family life and my interest in the arts, particularly film and literature.”

Did science/engineering/technology give you a buzz at school?

“I enjoyed maths and chemistry at school, as well as languages. I chose engineering as a career because I liked the idea of doing something interesting and challenging and felt that I could learn languages at any time. I also felt that I would be more employable with an engineering degree.”

What has been the highlight of your career to date?

“The transformation of O’Connell Street has been the highlight so far. I’m very proud of the role I played in bringing the Spire project to a conclusion and in starting the street works. It was a challenging project which was very much in the public eye, but the Spire has become an emblem of the city.”

Learn more about the work of Dublin City Council

Born near Hillsborough, Co. Down, Harry discovered a love for mechanics and engineering whilst working at his brother’s motor and bicycle repair business.

He subsequently became the first man in Ireland to design and develop his own aeroplane – a replica of which can be seen at the Ulster Folk and Transport museum. His first flight took place in December 1909.

By 1911, Harry had set up his own garage in Belfast. When, in 1917, the Irish Board of Agriculture approached him on how to improve yield of food production, he turned to the design of machinery.

He saw fault with the large, heavy American tractors that he was selling through his garage, especially how the cumbersome design worked with the plough. Harry built his own plough, light and simple, and coupled it to the tractor in a three point linkage system, making it a single rather than two separate units. The innovation was brilliant and safe. He patented the ‘Ferguson System’ in 1926.

In 1938 Harry sold a tractor design to Henry Ford and by 1947, 300,000 Ford Ferguson tractors had been sold. Unfortunately the partnership ended with a lengthy lawsuit in 1950. Later, Harry merged with Massey-Harris, a Canadian company, to form Massey-Ferguson, who are renowned for selling tractors and other agricultural machinery throughout the world.

Holland began work on submarine design after emigrating to New Jersey. Initially funded by The Fenians, who wanted to use Holland’s submarines against British warships, his first sub sank after someone forgot to install the screw plugs.

He went on to design a series of submarines “suitable for war”. It was not until after his death that Holland became widely recognised and renowned as the inventor of the modern submarine.

In 1964 a plaque was erected in Liscannor to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of his death. The town’s Castle Street has been renamed Holland Street in his honour.

Visiting Liscannor but haven’t got a submarine handy? You can still see sharks, congor eels, starfish and other Atlantic Coast underwater life at Lahinch Seaworld. Or, look for fossil tracks of marine animals in Liscannor Stone, a variety of 300 million year old local stone.

The Cliffs of Moher and Aillwee Cave are only a short drive away.

Read more about John Phillip Holland

John Joseph Gallagher - studying for a PhD in neuroscience

What were your main ‘career decision’ milestones so far?

I did a degree course in Electronic Engineering and by the end of it I had very little interest in working in that area. I then did a Masters in Medical Physics – this was a great move.

It opened up a whole host of new areas that I could work in and it got me interested in biology.

I then spent some time working in the Central Remedial Clinic (CRC) and the Irish Medicines Board (IMB) as a Clinical Engineer.

I got to carry out some research in the CRC and assessed clinical trial applications in the IMB, and this work convinced me that I wanted to do a PhD.

Who are the people who most influenced your career direction?

I talked to a lot of people when considering going back to college. The people who offered the best advice were friends who had done PhDs or were halfway through one.

A brother of a friend of mine was one of the few people I knew that was an engineer working in biology – he was able to provide some really helpful advice as well.

Does your job allow you to have a lifestyle you are happy with?

I organise my days as I want, starting and finishing at times that suit me. A great advantage of doing a PhD is being able to take long stretches of time off to go travelling.

As a PhD student you have to accept that you’re going to spend some time not earning as much as the people who you went to college with. However, the hope is that your time spent researching will prove more beneficial as you move on and that what you’ve done will open up more doors for you.

What are the main tasks and responsibilities?

Carrying out experiments is the part of the job that I spend the most of my time on. Equally important is keeping up to date with the research area and writing up results.

Often you spend time helping someone out with a technique or learning something from another person.

What’s cool?

The best part of the job is learning about something that completely changes how things in a certain area are understood.

People all over the world are making advances in different areas and to be able to hear, understand and contribute to these is extremely rewarding.

What subjects did you take in school and how have these influenced your career path?

I didn’t do any life science subjects in school or college. I only realised my interest in the area after I did my degree and although this placed me at a disadvantage initially, it doesn’t matter so much as every research field is so complex that very few people know it all.

I don’t regret studying engineering subjects at an undergraduate level. As I now get to combine these approaches in a completely different field such as neuroscience. This could have never happened the other way around!

What is your education to date?

• Leaving Cert – Physics, Economics, Technical Drawing (1999)
• Electronic Engineering degree in NUI, Galway (1999-2003)
• Masters in Medical Physics in NUI, Galway (2003-2004)
• Four-year integrated PhD in Neuroscience, Trinity College Dublin (2005-present)

What aspects of your education have proven most important for your job?

I am in a four-year PhD programme in neuroscience. In the first year I carried out three lab rotations. I got to spend some time working in a genetics lab, a psychology lab and a magnetic resonance imaging lab.

This exposure to so many different areas and techniques was fantastic. It made me realise that you need to really explore and learn about any field of research before you start work in it.

Have you undertaken, or do you plan to undertake any further training as part of your job?

I’m always very interested in learning new things, specifically new techniques and approaches. I would love to spend some time learning about stem cells.

I think when you work in research you’re always eager to learn new things.

What personal qualities do you have that helps you in your career?

I’m fairly organised and that helps, but I think being a curious person is the quality that really makes a difference in a PhD.

You also have to be extremely determined as experiments often don’t work out.

What is your dream job?

I’d love to be a science journalist, to get a chance to see and hear about what all the best and brightest in the world are up to would be great.

What advice would you give to someone considering this job?

Anyone who has done a PhD will tell you that you have to be really hard working and extremely persistent. You also need to be interested in the area you’re working in.

Most of the people I know who have done PhDs are also highly motivated and don’t really need to be looked after on a day-to-day basis.

A major aspect of every PhD student’s life is their supervisor. Supervisors differ greatly in their approach. If you’re considering doing a PhD try to talk to people who have worked under that supervisor to see if you think the style of supervision suits you.

What are the three most important personal characteristics required for the job?

Organised, curious and persistent.

What kinds of work experience would provide a good background for this position?

It’s always good to do a undergraduate project in the field you want to work in. Even better would be to do the project in a lab you might like to work in.