A Day in the Life of a Teekay Graduate Engineer - Teekay

November 19, 2015

“I didn’t expect the amount of support and mentoring we have had so far.”

Euan & Michael during the 24 Peaks Challenge

At Teekay in Glasgow we offer excellent opportunities for graduate engineers who tend to have studied an M.Eng in Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering at the nearby Strathclyde University. Our graduate recruitment program has been running since 2011 and has been a resounding success so far with us attracting some of the top candidates from one of the most reputable Universities in Scotland. Our hope is that by investing time in this process we are finding candidates who might one day become the leaders of Teekay. Following the success of our first graduate program in 2011, when we hired Tom Shelton and Owen Branagan, a decision was made to take on a further two graduates, with Euan Greer and Michael McNaul joining in August 2014. The exposure and opportunities that Michael and Euan have had in their first 12 months has just been phenomenal. They both exude huge energy, enthusiasm and humour which only adds to the great working environment we have here in the Glasgow office. We thought it would be fitting to interview Euan and Michael around their first year anniversary at Teekay to find out what their highs (and any lows) have been over the past 12 months… For those who don’t know you, can you tell us a little about yourself? Michael: “I’m 25 and grew up on the north coast of Northern Ireland in a little seaside town. I took a year out after school and worked in an engineering company before moving to Glasgow to study Marine Engineering and Naval Architecture at Strathclyde University. Outside of work, I am a keen rower and have rowed for Scotland and Great Britain. I competed for the national team at the European Championships in Russia.” Euan: “I’m 24 and was born in Edinburgh but raised in Glasgow. I studied Naval Architecture with Ocean Engineering at Strathclyde University and I did summer placements in London and Aberdeen for offshore consultants during my University holidays. The people weren’t very friendly in either place and so it’s great to work for a company now where everyone is so approachable. I always wanted to remain in Glasgow so that I could continue playing rugby for my club and so I was delighted to be offered the job at Teekay!” Do you have a random fact about yourself you would like to share with everyone? Euan: “I once performed in a tribute band for a Romanian pop group called ‘Ozone.’ I was the lead singer and guitarist.” Michael: “Just after passing my driving test I accidentally drove through a house (three walls…) I’m obviously a better driver now!!!” Tell us about your first year at Teekay?

Lobito dry dock at Ferrol, Spain

“It has gone by in a flash! We both spent the first year of our graduate program working in the technical team in the Glasgow office. The purpose of this was to develop our technical knowledge before transferring over to the operations team. In the past 12 months, we have been exposed to electrical and instrumentation challenges, maintenance issues, performance, LNG contracts and new-build projects. There has been a great balance between travel and time spent in the office. Between us we have been involved in the Polar Spirit ballast tank repair in Trinidad; the Woodside Donaldson rotor repair at the Sembawang yard; the Meridian Spirit engine overhaul at sea; Arwa / Marib vessel manager inspections and the Soyo drydock in Singapore. The list goes on but we have learned so much from each of these trips. We are now in the second stage of the program and recently moved to the Operations team where we expect to be exposed to everything from crewing, purchasing, budgets and really putting our problem solving skills to the test!“ Michael has just returned from the Lobito drydock in Ferrol, Spain where he spent one month assisting the Vessel Manager, predominately with the cost controlling. Speaking of his trip Michael said, “It was a great place to learn as a lot of the equipment was being stripped apart and overhauled, so I was able to see how things like cargo pumps were assembled or how barrier testing in cargo tanks is done as well as understanding the importance of hull preparation. One of the highlights of the trip was the cargo tank inspection. It was very impressive inside the tank and it almost looked like something out of a sci-fi movie.” Euan will also shortly be heading to Brest in France where he will be assisting Vessel Manager Anup Singh with the Polar Spirit drydock and performing a similar role. An overview of their first year would be incomplete without mentioning that they recently took part in the 24 Peaks Challenge set in the beautiful Lake District. “We climbed 24 peaks within 24 hours, encountering difficult terrain, lengthy descents and steep ascents, a two-day challenge over a walking distance of 31 miles. We helped to raise over £4000 for the Seafarers UK charity (Teekay raised £16000 in total). We feel very privileged to have been offered jobs at Teekay and have been exposed to so much more in 12 months than any of our University peers that we keep in touch with.” What is your role when you’re onboard one of the ships? “It really depends on the nature of the visit but naturally we spend quite a lot of time just observing what is going on and learning. It is a huge learning curve! Quite often the vessel manager responsible for the ship will give us a list of things to help investigate or we will simply be shadowing the vessel manager and helping with their inspections. A key task for us on-board any ship is to engage with the crew and develop a good working relationship with them.” What has been the most exciting or happiest moment of being a Teekay graduate so far? Michael: “At University we never got the opportunity to visit a ship and so to finally have the chance to go to a drydock and work alongside the team has been an amazing experience. I also got to shadow the engineers during the motor replacement in the Woodside Donaldson which was a big highlight for me. It was exciting to see the full process. Gregor Bogle and I captured the whole process on video and shared it on yammer! (If a career in shipping doesn’t work out then maybe I can fall back on my film making skills…)” Euan: “There are so many but I’d have to say receiving my first pay slip which was put towards my first mortgage payment! I felt very proud. My first ship visit to the Polar Spirit was exciting and very memorable for me. I also really enjoyed the Glasgow team building event at Crieff Hydro. We had only been with Teekay for two weeks and we were asked to join the fun and activities. This was an excellent experience for us to get to know everyone in a relaxed environment.” Has there been any unexpected surprises along the way? Euan: “I never imagined I would have the opportunity to speak with the CEO within the first seven months at a global organisation. The senior leadership team visited the Glasgow office and we got the opportunity to speak and listen to Peter Evensen talk about the future of Teekay which was a great experience.“ Michael: “I didn’t expect the amount of support and mentoring we have had so far. There has been a good balance between responsibility and mentoring. I was also surprised when we were given the opportunity to present to the SLT. I was terrified before the presentation. I have never enjoy presenting and always felt awkward, however, I got the impression that they enjoyed it. It was a great confidence boost and I now feel like I could present to anyone going forward.” What advice would you give to Andrew Wilson who has started the graduate program at the beginning of last month? Both: “Say yes to anything except for the 24 Peaks Challenge!” Who knows what the future holds for Michael and Euan, however, it is clear from speaking with both of them that they have very promising careers ahead of them.

Euan Greer

Michael McNaul