About Darren Emery M.Sc. — Founder, The Engineering University

Darren Emery M.Sc. — Senior Instrument Engineer, Technical Authority and Founder of The Engineering University

M.Sc. Teesside University Instrument Artificer (Tiffy) Technical Authority 40+ Years in Industry Hazardous Area Specialist

The Founder

Forty Years. One Standard.

I started as an Apprentice Instrument Artificer at sixteen — at ICI Billingham, one of the great chemical manufacturing plants of the United Kingdom. What that apprenticeship gave me was not just technical knowledge. It gave me standards. A way of working. A belief that if something is worth doing, it is worth doing correctly.

Over the next four decades, I worked across nearly every major hazardous industry the UK has — offshore, nuclear, biomass, pharmaceutical, petrochemical, refinery, steel, LPG. The companies I worked for include ICI, Tata Steel Port Talbot, Valero Pembroke, SABIC, Calor Gas and Exolum Pipeline System.

I hold an M.Sc. from Teesside University and I am a time-served Instrument Artificer (Tiffy) — a designation that carries real meaning in engineering. In hazardous area work, I have operated as a Technical Authority — the final word on whether work is technically sound, safe and compliant.

I have sat the Ex01–04 Gas and Vapours assessment myself — multiple times, across a career. I know precisely what is in those five days, where candidates struggle, and what separates the engineers who pass from those who do not. I built POSISYS™ and The Engineering University because nothing like them existed — and because I know they will help.

"For an Instrument Engineer, being a Technical Authority means you are not just doing the work — you are the final word on whether the work is safe, compliant and technically sound. While a Project Manager focuses on schedule and budget, the TA focuses on technical risk. The buck stops with me."

— Darren Emery M.Sc., Founder, The Engineering University

Career History

Forty Years Across British Industry

1983 – 1987

ICI Billingham — Apprentice Instrument Artificer

Started at sixteen as an Apprentice Instrument Artificer at ICI Billingham — one of the landmark chemical manufacturing sites in the UK. Four years of rigorous technical apprenticeship, completing as a fully time-served Instrument Artificer (Tiffy).

Late 1980s – 1990s

Offshore — North Sea Operations

Five years working offshore in the North Sea. Hazardous area operations at their most demanding — isolation systems, safety-critical instrumentation and working environments where technical standards are non-negotiable.

1990s

SSI UK — British Steel Redcar

Senior Instrument Engineer at British Steel Redcar (later SSI UK). Heavy industrial environment covering blast furnace instrumentation and process control systems at one of the UK's major steel manufacturing facilities.

2000s

Thermo Fisher Scientific

Instrument engineering in a precision pharmaceutical and analytical instrumentation environment — bringing hazardous area discipline into a high-compliance, regulated industry context.

2000s – 2010s

SABIC UK Chemicals — Wilton / Teesside

Senior E&I and instrument engineering roles at SABIC UK Chemicals. Large-scale petrochemical process plant work covering Ex protection, DSEAR compliance and safety instrumented systems.

2010s

Tata Steel — Port Talbot, Wales

Two years at Tata Steel Port Talbot as Senior Instrument Engineer. One of the UK's largest and most complex industrial sites — blast furnace, coke ovens, rolling mills and associated hazardous area infrastructure.

2010s

Valero Pembroke Refinery — Technical Authority

Senior Instrument Engineer and Technical Authority at Valero Pembroke — one of the largest oil refineries in the UK. As Technical Authority, Darren held final responsibility for technical integrity, ATEX compliance and safety-critical instrumentation across the site.

2010s – 2020s

Calor UK — Canvey Island — Technical Authority

Technical Authority at Calor UK's LPG operations at Canvey Island. LPG terminal work at the highest level of hazardous area complexity — Zone 0 environments, intrinsic safety systems and safety instrumented functions.

2020s

Exolum Pipeline System — via Storm Engineering

Senior Instrument Engineering via Storm Engineering at Exolum Pipeline System — a major fuel pipeline and storage network. Ex inspection, IS systems and pipeline terminal instrumentation at the highest level of operational complexity.

Sectors Covered

Hazardous Industries. Real Experience.

Oil & Gas / Refinery

Valero Pembroke, Exolum — major UK refinery and pipeline terminal operations

Offshore

Five years North Sea — safety-critical hazardous area operations

Nuclear & Biomass

High-compliance, safety-critical process control environments

Petrochemical

ICI, SABIC — large-scale chemical process plant instrumentation

Steel

Tata Steel Port Talbot, SSI Redcar — heavy industrial process systems

LPG

Calor UK Canvey Island — Zone 0 terminal and IS system technical authority

Pharmaceutical

Thermo Fisher Scientific — precision instrument engineering in regulated environments

Engineering Education

Founder — The Engineering University. Creator of POSISYS™ preparation system

Understanding the Role

What Is a Technical Authority?

In hazardous area engineering, a Technical Authority (TA) is not just a senior engineer. The TA holds final accountability for the technical integrity of engineering work on a site. When there is a technical dispute, the TA resolves it. When a decision has safety implications, the TA's judgement is the last word.

A Project Manager focuses on schedule and budget. A TA focuses on whether the work is technically correct, safe and compliant — regardless of schedule pressure or cost implications.

Darren has held Technical Authority roles at Valero Pembroke and Calor UK Canvey Island — two of the most demanding hazardous area environments in the UK.

Technical Final Decision-Maker

The TA is the final word on whether engineering work is technically sound. Their approval is required before safety-critical work proceeds.

ATEX & IECEx Compliance Owner

The TA is responsible for ensuring all equipment, installations and modifications comply with ATEX Directives, IECEx standards and DSEAR Regulations.

Technical Risk Assessment

Where technical risk exists — new materials, modification of existing systems, novel installation methods — the TA assesses, approves or rejects.

Accountability Without Delegation

The TA's accountability cannot be delegated. If something goes wrong with a technically approved system, the TA answers for the decision. The buck stops with them.

Darren Emery M.Sc.