Full profile details
Andrew Mitchell
Regional Chair – Yorkshire & Humber
Andrew has been Regional Chair of the Yorkshire and Humber region since 2018.
Having started his career as an ECITB apprentice in the 1990s, Andrew is now Commercial Director for OLG.
He is passionate about training and the work the ECITB delivers to develop the future engineers of tomorrow.
Based in the Humber region, OLG has been operating since 1982 delivering Engineering, Consultancy, Project Management and Recruitment services across the UK.
Andrew is also a board member of CATCH the Humber-based membership and training centre.
He brings over 30 years of engineering construction industry knowledge having also held senior management positions with Engie and Spencer Group.
Jamie White
Regional Chair – Nuclear Skills Forum
Jamie has been involved in skills and training throughout his working life, starting with a 20-year career as an officer in the RAF.
He served in a number of war zones where leadership and meticulous planning were the expectation. He was involved in Battle Management, Intelligence and Flight Operations as well as United Nations Peacekeeping and NATO Ambassadorial roles.
Jamie then joined the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB), holding a number of senior roles in his 10-year tenure, including the Head of the National Skills Academy for Construction.
During that time he was involved in many large-scale projects including TTT, the Olympic 2012 build, Highways Agency projects (M25 widening) and Building Schools for the Future.
He joined EDF in 2014 as its Central Training Manager for Hinkley Point C (HPC) and has held roles such as the Construction and Onboarding Manager as well as Senior Strategic Partnership Manager, working both directly for HPC and the wider EDF business.
He is responsible for many strategic projects including HPC’s apprenticeship strategy as well as the ‘Centres of Excellence’ concept.
With a wealth of knowledge around funding and labour market intelligence, he is now on secondment to the NCfN team with an aim to expand the footprint of the college into the south east. This will have a particular focus on Sizewell C and the Green Energy Skills agenda.
John Webster
Regional Chair – Scotland Central
John is the Operations Director for Applus within the UK (HEX, NDT, Rope Access & Training), looking at the ongoing and evolving challenges for the industry in terms of the appropriate skills and competency for testing, inspection and certification.
This oversight includes the planning for future skills development in a challenging market, coupled with the technical innovations within the sector, managing how best to align the skills developed by Applus in Oil & Gas, Nuclear and Aerospace, to bring best practice to the challenges encountered in the delivery of the service provision.
He is a highly experienced and commercially strong, financially focused Operational Director with extensive knowledge within a wide variety of sectors, ranging from Manufacturing to Service Delivery in Offshore / Onshore Oil & Gas, Engineering & NDT Inspection / Rope Access, with experience in Heavy Crane and Plant Hire.
John has long been dedicated to the training and development of all levels of staff and has been involved with the ECITB Apprenticeship Schemes throughout his career at Applus.
He also pioneered the programme within Applus working with the MoD Resettlement Scheme. This identifies and re-trains personnel, enabling them to transition skills gained during their military career into civilian qualifications to become valuable members of the workforce.
A passionate advocate for STEM, John champions industry to take advantage of the whole spectrum of potential candidates to ensure that the skills gap can be adequately managed and that employers can benefit from a more diverse and capable workforce.
Mark Poole
Regional Chair – Wales
Mark’s industry experience spans more than four decades. He started out as a 16-year-old mechanical fitter apprentice but since the late 1980s, Mark’s career has been rooted in the world of training, including close links to Wales, where he co-founded the Cardiff-based charity TRACK 2000. This provided training for the socially disadvantaged.
During the 1990s, Mark held the role of Training and Enterprise Manager of the Vale of Glamorgan Council and was the vice-chair of the region’s Training Provider Association.
He joined the ECITB in 1998 as a Senior Development Advisor within the Product Development Team, where he developed the ECITB’s flagship Supervisory Management Training & Development (SMTD) programme.
He went on to become Head of Partnering and Funding, creating the UK-wide initiative ‘Ambition Energy – Engineering Construction’, and then Regional Operations Manager with responsibility for Wales, the Midlands, South West, South Coast, London Head Offices, East of England and Southern North Sea.
From 2006 to 2020, Mark was founding Managing Director of Phoenix Training Solutions, a leading training provider of the ECITB. During this time, he developed numerous ECITB national courses and assessment tests, such as IOSH Engineering Construction.
Now the Learning and Competence Manager at Altrad, Mark has taken on operational training management for Altrad’s Wales and Southern region. He is also a member of the ECITB’s CCNSG Committee and has played an instrumental role in creating development pathways.
Phil Colquhoun
Regional Chair – Midlands
Phil is Managing Director at NIRAS Lorien Engineering Solutions (UK) Ltd.
He has had a varied career, having worked in manufacturing and within an international engineering design & project management business serving the Food, Life Sciences and Beverage Industries specialising in capital projects.
NIRAS Lorien Engineering Solutions is part of the NIRAS Group, a value-driven, multi-disciplinary engineering consultancy committed to sustainable progress and service delivery with over 3,000 employees.
A keen advocate for investing in staff training and development, NIRAS Lorien Engineering Solutions has been a long-standing participant in the ECITB ACTIVE Cup project management competition and sends a team every year. Phil, himself, took part in the competition more than two decades ago.
Seán McKirdy
Regional Chair – South and EDP companies
Seán joined RB Plant Construction in January 2017 as Senior Projects Mechanical Engineer and was invited to join the Board of Directors in 2018. With over 20 years of industry experience, Seán has held leadership roles within multidisciplinary teams across the Rail Safety, Oil & Gas, and Metals industries, delivering innovative solutions to complex engineering challenges.
As a PRINCE2 Practitioner Certified project manager, Seán has successfully led numerous multi-million-pound projects, including work on top-tier COMAH operator sites. His expertise spans strategic project planning, HVAC and process systems design, equipment specification, and the coordination of cross-functional teams to achieve project objectives efficiently and safely.
In his role as a board member, Seán has demonstrated exceptional skill in strategic stakeholder engagement, building and maintaining strong relationships with clients, regulators, and partners to align objectives and drive organisational success. He has been instrumental in steering high-level decision-making, fostering business development, and delivering sustainable growth through a forward-thinking and collaborative approach.
Seán is deeply committed to building diverse teams and fostering a strong, supportive, and inclusive organisational culture. He champions initiatives that encourage diversity of thought and background, recognising the value it brings to innovation, decision-making, and overall team performance.
Seán holds an MSc in Oil and Gas Engineering from the University of Aberdeen and a BEng (Hons) in Engineering from the Open University. He is a Fellow of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers and a Petrofac Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering.
Beyond his professional achievements, Seán is a passionate advocate for STEM education. As a STEMNET and IMechE STEM ambassador, he actively encourages young people to pursue careers in engineering, demonstrating his commitment to inspiring the next generation of industry leaders.
Steve Hamilton
Regional Chair – North Scotland
Steve Hamilton, is Chief Technical Authority, EMEA, with Xodus Group in Aberdeen.
With 30 years experience in the oil and gas industry in both technical and managerial roles, Steve has worked in both a detailed environment and in conceptual studies for operators, contractors and consultants.
His background as a process engineer and a specialist in flow assurance, makes Steve well placed to understand the skills challenges facing the engineering construction sector.
Stewart Maxwell
Regional Chair – East of England
Stewart joined Aquaterra Energy, a leader in offshore engineering solutions, as Technical Director in May 2013. In this capacity, he spearheads technical innovations across all facets of the business, encompassing wells and riser solutions, analysis, their flagship offshore platform solution Sea Swift, as well as wind, hydrogen, and CCS.
With a BEng in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Aberdeen and over 30 years’ of experience in the energy industry, Stewart has held positions in both Asia Pacific and the UK throughout his career. His expertise spans analysis, design, engineering and installation of riser and conductor systems (shallow and deep water), as well as minimum facilities platforms, bespoke offshore engineering and offshore problem solving.
Before joining Aquaterra Energy, Stewart spent 3 years as Engineering Manager with Nio Petroleum, a start-up oil and gas company, helping to set up their operations in Kuala Lumpur prior to their acquisition by Enquest and 13 years with the Acteon Group of companies, in various positions including Regional Director – Asia Pacific and Global Manager – Conductor Systems. He also set up his own engineering consultancy in riser and conductor analysis, well integrity and project management.
Tom Ventre
Regional Chair – North West England
Tom is the Managing Director of Laker Vent Engineering, an Engineering Construction business specialising in the off-site fabrication, and on-site installation of process piping systems for highly regulated industries.
Tom has worked in the industry for 25 years, with a background in construction site & project management of engineering construction projects throughout the UK, and more recently, leading Laker Vent’s operational business through a period of growth.
During his career Tom has gained a vast knowledge of the industry and an established network of senior figures within it, understanding the challenges ahead in ensuring there are sufficient competent personnel to undertake the Engineering Construction Projects planned for the next 15 years.
Tom also sits on the Engineering Construction Industry Association (ECIA) council collaborating with employer members all sharing common goals to attract people into the industry, developing their skills, and ensuring that there is opportunity for retaining & developing people & skills.
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