Return to Alma Mater for Polymer Graduates
Two SPRA members, who were classmates at Edinburgh Napier University, have recently met up after 25 years when they both returned to take up posts at their Alma Mater. Sheila Patrick (nee Cowtan) and Grant Leslie first arrived at Napier in 1980 to join the first year of a brand new course, BSc Applied Chemistry.
In 1985 they both graduated with Honours from the Polymer Science and Technology route which incorporated a sandwich placement year. Sheila headed off to Avon Rubber in Melksham to work on compound and die design in conjunction with Bristol University. She then trained as a secondary teacher at Cambridge and taught for several years at Whitworth High School near Rochdale, before returning to academic research on reactive extrusion at the University of Bradford. Her next University post was with Materials Ireland at the University of Limerick where she was involved with a CRAFT project for a consortium of rotational moulders in four European countries and with developing and implementing a test standard for the protective clothing used in international rugby. She has now returned to Edinburgh to work on a cellulose fibre project in the Centre for Timber Engineering at Edinburgh Napier University. Sheila has also been active in motorsport, including assisting her husband with his rally preparation business.
Grant's career has followed a more industrial route interspersed with periods in academia. After graduation he spent some time in materials testing before his first return to Napier to undertake a research project on smoke suppressants for PVC, in conjunction with Royalite Plastics, balanced with part-time lecturing in polymer technology. This led to a full-time post with Royalite Plastics for the next 7 years, eventually becoming Technical Operations Manager. Grant's expertise in fire performance additives saw him move to Switzerland to Ciba Speciality Chemicals as an Applications Specialist and later as Business Development Manager for N Europe. Following his return to Scotland he again returned to Napier, first as a Materials Consultant in the Advanced Materials Centre and more recently as a Technology Adviser in the EDTC Technology Gateway.
These two case studies, demonstrating the varied and interesting careers that can follow from studying polymer science and technology, are typical of graduates from the BSc Applied Chemistry course at Edinburgh Napier University. Sadly this course was discontinued in the 1990s but the BEng Polymer Engineering and MSc Polymer Engineering programmes at Edinburgh Napier University continue to produce useful graduates with a polymer background.
