Stephen Lamb, director of operations, Jacobs Engineering UK Limited

Media City is a commercial development in Salford Quays, consisting of three office blocks and a studio that will be bigger than two football pitches – for the BBC and other commercial users – as well as two residential towers, an office tower and a hotel. It’s like building a miniature city centre, with all the roads and infrastructure it requires. I have been involved with the project since Jacobs started bidding two-and-a-half years ago. The whole project is worth about £2 billion, and we’re currently working on phase one, worth £450 million. Phase one is due to be completed in 2010, but there are intentions to develop the site further.

A fast-track programme

I’m responsible for the delivery of the civil and structural engineering services. I make sure the resources are in place, and ensure that we’re delivering the technical requirements. I have regular client meetings and I also look after the interface with the architect and the consultants who are working on the mechanical and electrical aspects. This project is very fast-track and we can’t undertake a lot of the design until we have architectural and building services information, so it has been a challenge to get sufficient information.

I have faced diverse issues, including nesting birds and liaising with the Manchester Ship Canal managers, because two buildings are next to the dock wall and we had to minimise the impact. We’ve used 3D design and modelling techniques to model the infrastructure services because the requirements are so complex. I’ve also looked into the servicing of buildings for deliveries and lorry access. This is certainly not the type of work that a structural engineer normally gets involved in!

Industry insights

20 years in the industry
IT has developed hugely. When I started, analysing a structure meant you got a foot of printout from a mainframe computer; you can now have a model on the screen within seconds.

Architects are designing complex structures and incredibly high buildings. The level of engineering needed to support or justify the architecture is astounding and a huge achievement.

Future developments
There’s going to be a shortage of resources. Civil and structural engineers need to get smarter in the way we do our work so we can deliver projects more efficiently and pre-empt problems in our design. A number of big projects are coming up, particularly in power and transport. There’s great potential for proactive people who have the capability and want to take responsibility.

Top tips

• Enjoy your job! Take opportunities and don’t be worried about making the odd mistake.
• Communication is not just talking, it’s also listening and understanding. If you don’t understand what someone wants, you’re lost.
• Listen and learn from others. Engineering is not about reinventing the wheel – it’s about developing other people’s ideas and experience.
• An all-round understanding of technical aspects is important, but you need to understand how they relate to and interact with other disciplines and the real world.

Stephen's career milestones

1990 Graduate engineer at Gifford
1993 Promoted to senior engineer
1997 Senior engineer at Allott & Lomax (now Jacobs)
1999 Promoted to principal engineer
2000 Technical director at Babtie (now Jacobs)
2004 Promoted to divisional director
2007 Promoted to director of operations at Jacobs

Stephen Lamb, CEng MICE MIStructE, is the director of operations at Jacobs Engineering UK Limited. He has an MEng in civil engineering from Coventry University, 1990