Careers in lightning conductor engineering

We love Spider-Man. And why wouldn't we he bring us joy? He can swing from building to building, has a sixth sense and superhuman strength. He can shoot webs from his wrists, for pity's sake.

And we're also not ashamed to admit that, in our younger days, we bought the outfit, flung ourselves at walls and left small gifts under our pillow in the hope that someone would grant us our lifelong wish to scale tall buildings.

So we were more than a little excited to discover that you can get paid to act like a superhero.

The job

Lightning conductor engineers climb buildings to make sure they are structurally sound, carry out repair work, and install lightning protection systems while avoiding gas and electrical cables. Lightning tends to get attracted by tall buildings, which doesn't do the buildings any good at all, so engineers work all over the place - protecting industrial chimneys, church spires, bridges, and any other buildings that lightning could take a shine to. The systems they install harmlessly channel the energy from the lightning into the earth and away from the building or structure itself.

There's a big focus on health and safety in this job. Lightning conductor engineers have to work with scaffolding, harnesses, and sometimes have to abseil down buildings. You can't afford to take any chances with yourself, or, for that matter, with the quality of the work you're carrying out.

Because, and this is important, with great power comes great responsibility. Even if the power is the result of an atmospheric discharge of electricity, rather than a radioactive spider bite...

Your apprenticeship

You must be over 16 to take this apprenticeship.

You'll complete a Lightning Conductor Engineer NVQ Level 2, where you'll learn about the equipment used, how to earth lightning and avoid underground cables.

You'll also complete Key Skills in Application of Numbers and Communication, as well as Employment Rights and Responsibilities.

Where next?

ConstructionSkills looks after this apprenticeship. For more information visit ConstructionSkills [new window].

 

Reproduced from The Apprenticeship Guide [new window]