Meet the team: Joel

What’s been your career path to EDF’s nuclear family? 

I’m an industrial engineer, specialising in quality. I started my career with an apprenticeship with an apprenticeship in a mechanical factory, producing steel for machines used in the construction and railway industries. 

I only joined Torness power station in 2024. Prior to that I worked in the printing banknote industry in Mexico and the UK. It might sound like a completely different world, but they’re both highly regulated industries with high standards.

What motivated you to work for EDF? 

I was at COP26 in Glasgow and there was a lot of talk about big investments being made in the nuclear industry, so I started looking into jobs in the sector. I’d never worked in nuclear before, but given my background in applying standards and compliance obligations to the printing banknote industry, I thought I might be able to transfer my skills to nuclear. The more I looked, the more I saw the same skills and keywords coming up, so I applied and joined EDF in 2024.

Since I joined, I’ve undertaken quite an ambitious training plan to learn about the sector. But there are definitely similarities when it comes to the migration of risk and compliance with strict safety and quality standards. In my previous job, I was working on explosive areas with solvents and chemicals, so hazardous materials basically. I am really impressed with the safety culture at EDF. Every morning, we have the safety message in our first meeting and it sets the tone for the day.

What do you value in the workplace? 

I like building relationships with the people I work with. I also really like the structure of what I do; I enjoy the attention to detail required to make sure we comply with safety and quality standards.

What do you enjoy most about your day-to-day work? 

I joined Torness power station at an interesting time – when it was in outage! This is a periodic shutdown of the site for scheduled and systematic maintenance of essential plant components. It’s carried out to ensure the station is compliant with statutory requirements and that our nuclear operations remain safe and reliable. So it was busier and a bit different from usual! But I enjoyed getting to know the different contractor partners working on site.

Does working for a company that’s helping Britain to achieve Net Zero motivate you? 

It was being in Glasgow for COP26 that really started my interest in nuclear. The city was so busy – you couldn’t miss the traffic, there were helicopters overhead and security all over the city. But it made me really interested to learn more about nuclear and how it could help Britain transition to low carbon energy.

What does being part of EDF’s nuclear family offer you in terms of career development and job progression? 

There are definitely a lot more opportunities available beyond Torness power station as part of EDF’s nuclear family. I can see in my skills area alone that there are opportunities for working in quality management, and I’m also interested in exploring the area of business improvement more. I see it as a big advantage that EDF covers the full lifecycle of nuclear from construction to nuclear operations, defueling and decommissioning.

Would you describe EDF and/or your team as a diverse and inclusive place to work? 

It’s definitely more diverse than my previous job, which was in a very small factory and mostly male-dominated. I’ve not been at EDF long, but it seems like a supportive and inclusive workplace. 

What’s your top tip for someone applying for roles at EDF in your skills area? 

I’m not from the nuclear industry or have technical nuclear knowledge. But quality and compliance is an area that crosses industries. So if you want to transfer into the nuclear industry from outside, think about the transferable skills you have – and qualities like safety, conformance, compliance, attention to detail… These are all skills that are needed in the nuclear industry too. I’m pleased I made the move, as I was ready for a change. So I’d encourage anyone to take the leap, and switch into the nuclear sector.