From restoring Battersea Park or reconstructing a historic bridge in Bath to working on the first in a generation nuclear new build, to leading the Design & Engineering function in our Power business, Gareth Harris’ career shows just how many directions a career in Design & Engineering can take. Over more than 20 years at Balfour Beatty, Gareth, a chartered Civil Engineer, has worked across Balfour Beatty and is presently Design & Engineering Director for our Power Transmission and Distribution business.
His story is one of opportunity, learning and taking on challenges before feeling completely ready for them – and offers a glimpse into where your own career could take you.
Starting a career in engineering
Gareth studied Civil Engineering at Cardiff University and first joined Balfour Beatty in 2001 for a year in industry, working on projects in Cardiff Docks.
At the time, Gareth recalls not being entirely convinced that project delivery was the right space in the industry for him, but felt he need to experience more before making career decisions. He returned to university, completed his degree and came back to Balfour Beatty as a graduate in 2003 working for our regional civil engineering business in London.
Following projects in London, Gareth then moved with the Regional team across to Bristol, becoming part of the team working on the Area 2 contract for the Highways Agency. Projects that subsequently followed were in the South West and South Wales, taking him from Site Engineer to Project Lead.
Finding his feet on Victoria Bridge
One project in particular stands out from Gareth’s early career in project delivery - the restoration of the historic Victoria Bridge in Bath.
The Grade II listed suspension bridge, originally built in 1836, needed to be removed, refurbished and rebuilt - whilst keeping the River Avon navigable and maintaining pedestrian and cyclist access.
Rather than closing the area and lifting the bridge out with cranes, the team came up with an inventive solution. Temporary beams were installed beneath the bridge, and a movable gantry and trolley system was used to remove sections of the bridge so they could be refurbished.
The stone towers and foundations were restored before the bridge was rebuilt piece by piece, with the suspension chains reinstated and temporary supports eventually removed.
Gareth says this was a key project for him personally, that really brought home to him that he could deliver projects safely and successfully. The river remained open around 99% of the time, and the bridge itself remained open over 90% of the time during the refurbishment. The project was delivered safely and on budget, was recognised with awards, and the bridge was removed from English Heritage ‘structures at risk’ register.
Moving from construction into design management
It was during a £30million guided busway project in Bristol that Gareth moved into design management.
When the Design Manager left the project, Gareth stepped sideways into a design management role. This gave him the chance to work with design partners, get involved in technical leadership and collaborate with technical teams across Balfour Beatty.
But then, another opportunity came up.
In spring 2017, Balfour Beatty established the first iteration of our design partnership with Atkins, Mott MacDonald and WSP (now joined by Jacobs under SDP 2.0) and was approached by the SDP leadership team to lead the first Community of Practice.
Gareth describes this move as “another leap of faith – into something completely different, alongside my day job, and one that changed the course of my career.”
Building experience on major infrastructure projects
In 2017, Gareth moved into Balfour Beatty’s Major Projects area of the business.
He initially joined to work on the proposed Wylfa Newydd nuclear project in Anglesey before it was paused, and in January 2018 moved to Hinkley Point C. As Gareth memorably recalls he was already supporting the team having been asked “to help out for a couple of days a week”.
It was another significant step in his career. Gareth soon became Engineering Lead for the Phase 2 works - capturing the offshore and marine engineering and the subsequent underground connections from the tunnels. But he didn't arrive with experience in either offshore or underground construction.
In Gareth's own words, he “wasn’t initially convinced that I was the right person for the job. I hadn’t worked in nuclear, or offshore, or on a tunnelling project before – but many of the skills I’d developed in the earlier part of my career, coupled by learning from the Subject Matter Experts in those fields, soon meant that Hinkley became my engineering home.”
Today, Gareth looks back with pride at the work that he and his team completed during his seven-and-a-half-year tenure on the project, including the delivery of the offshore works, the tunnel shaft connections and a multitude of complex engineering challenges within a nuclear environment.
For Gareth, the experience reinforced something that has been a constant throughout his career: you don't need to have every answer before you take your next step. Sometimes, the opportunity itself is where the learning begins.
Where could your Design & Engineering journey take you?
There isn't one route into Design & Engineering, and there isn't one route through it, either.
You could build your expertise in a specialist engineering discipline, move into design management, work across different types of infrastructure or take your experience into project and technical leadership.
Gareth's career is one example. Starting in civil engineering and regional construction, he moved into design management before taking on major infrastructure and engineering leadership roles.
As your experience grows, so can the opportunities available to you, whether that's developing deeper technical expertise, exploring a different discipline or taking your next step into leadership. “I’ve had wonderful support throughout my career from those above and around me – prompting, mentoring, encouraging – whether that’s through the formal talent programmes, working to achieve CEng MICE status, changing roles or building something new for the first time."
Developing your career in Design & Engineering
Three years into his time at Hinkley, Gareth was asked to cover the Head of Engineering role, which he initially thought would be to cover a short sabbatical. Instead, for the next four years, he found himself responsible for 60 Balfour Beatty people – a huge jump from managing a much smaller team, as well as joining the project’s senior leadership team and taking responsibility for engineering across the project.
The role led the way for Gareth’s current role, becoming Design & Engineering Director for our Power Transmission and Distribution business in July 2026 where he now manages a team of over 350 people in the UK, with over 200 more in our Global Capability Centre in Bengaluru, India.
But for Gareth, progression isn’t just about his own career. One of the things he’s most passionate about is helping other people to progress, too. Gareth reflects on the support he’s received throughout his career and wants to ensure that he pays that forward.
He believes in mentorship – whether that’s via an apprenticeship or graduate route, but most importantly, having someone who believes in you. Gareth sees it as part of his responsibility to do that for others. “I’m fortunate already in my career to look back on some amazing projects, but it’s really satisfying to see my teams progressing in their careers – it’s brilliant to see them grow, and I want to be a positive part of their journey.”
Where could your career take you?
Gareth's career has taken him from regional construction and highways to design management, major infrastructure, nuclear engineering and ultimately Design & Engineering leadership.
His story shows that there isn't one route through a career in Design & Engineering. The opportunities can change as your experience grows, new projects come along and you discover where your skills can take you.
From major infrastructure and energy to power networks, transport and defence, there are opportunities to keep learning, build your expertise and take your next step.
Explore Design and Engineering careers at Balfour Beatty.
Gareth at the Peterhead substation
