My career starts as I graduate from Universidad de Chile as a young, naive, and starry-eyed Engineer. I got my MSc. in Mechanical Engineering at this time and did my thesis on a clever idea of improving the efficiency of Darrieus Vertical Axis Wind Turbines by cooling the air blades (it absolutely does not work.) It is with this youthful exuberance that I go out to take on the world.

My first work experiences as an intern at Dessau, and later on as a Project Engineer for Poch (now WSP) was humbling. I quickly realized how little everything I studied in university had to do with the real world. But it taught me a lot about the Power and Process industries, and I had the chance to work on the project to rebuild food conglomerate Carozzi’s Production Plant in Nos (the original caught fire after the 2010 Earthquake in Chile). The new plant was huge—a $350 million dollar project, spanning 115 thousand square meters and producing 375 thousand tons of food per year. It was my first brush with industrial megaprojects.

I worked in the Mechanical and Piping department under the leadership of Cristian Tapia; by all accounts, I was a good performer. I became proficient at hydraulic analysis, stress analysis, writing technical specs, designing P&IDs, and all that jazz. But the highlight of these experiences was the fact that I was technology-literate, and I quickly realized most engineers and designers are not. I started designing small automations for repetitive tasks because it seemed logical to me—for a lot of my colleagues, it was akin to voodoo magic.

I shared most of my work and sometimes I wonder if some of it is still in use! I think if I saw them, I would itch to fix them. Make them a little nicer, and more modern. But anyhow, this newfound talent of mine was put into good use very quickly: they had me program the company’s lotto pool for the 2010 World Cup.

...I take it as a compliment.

Later on, I joined Ausenco, where I worked under the mentorship of Cristian Santos, Paula Gómez, and Jorge Arancibia. At this time I take on a much bigger role and I have a chance at a second megaproject: an extension to Codelco’s Gabriela Mistral division. Mining is a very different industry to food and power; I learned a lot about the new processes and challenges that come with it. I spent several years there; I remember that team very fondly. Looking back, I consider the roles at Ausenco and WSP as my foundational years. They were the basis for what was to come.

Because something came: I was offered to join AVEVA, the British engineering software maker. But it meant leaving my work as a project engineer and taking a different path. At the time, it felt like a small decision. But in retrospect, it shaped my career going forward.

I took the role and transitioned into something that AVEVA named an Application Consultant. Basically, it meant helping customers with the implementation of engineering software, as well as tagging along with the salesperson to demonstrate the value of the solution.

I struggled. It required different skills than before: now I had to not only be technically proficient but also take the stage and communicate why it was a good idea to do what I did. Doing sales is difficult, and technical sales even more so—anybody who belittles sales has never taken a go at it.

In time, I improved and started excelling at it—due to a mix of engineering experience and technological literacy, I was able to translate difficult concepts to our customers in a clear and easy-to-understand manner. I’ll be quite honest: I never particularly enjoyed being part of the sales process. It’s difficult, uncomfortable, filled with rejection and a couple of times we were even yelled at. But it honed my communication skills tremendously.

The other great point of working for a software maker like AVEVA is that you’re not limited to a single project or a single team. You have to simultaneously support multiple companies and projects, and each of them has very different challenges. This was a great learning experience; I began seeing patterns across companies and industries. I lost count of how many companies and customers I had the chance to visit and work with: Arcadis, JRI, Pares y Álvarez, Codelco, Worley, Wood, Technip Energies, IPE, Instituto Mexicano del Petróleo, and the list goes on. I also got to work in the development scrum for the new Mining module for AVEVA Everything3D with colleagues in the UK, India, and South Korea, which was a wonderful experience.

After several years at AVEVA, I take my next career step and join thyssenkrupp in Chile. This time, I am the 3D Model Discipline Leader, and I’m coming in the middle of their participation in Codelco’s extension of their Andina division, a massive $1.4 billion USD investment.

It felt like a confluence of all my expertise: I had to understand the project, the engineering disciplines, the designers, the IT side and put all of it together to make things click. I worked under the mentorship of Carlos Sermer and Lars Ullmann, and together with my team took on the challenge of executing this behemoth of a project across Chile, Germany, and the US. It was a lot of stress, lost hair, and missed meals, but I still feel immensely proud of what we achieved.

My work at Andina got me enough notice that I was asked to move internationally to thyssenkrupp Uhde in Dortmund, where I worked under Tobias Johna. It was a new country, a new culture, and new expectations—I expected some adaptation time, naturally. But it was less than that. My arrival in Dortmund felt less like a new beginning and more like a wildfire.

It was definitely the most prolific role in my career. At Uhde, we had global reach and influence over multiple offices worldwide. And megaprojects were not the exception, they were the norm. I had the pleasure of contributing to the Kingdom of Brunei’s massive new fertilizer plant (~€1 billion EUR), MOL Group’s new plastics plant in Hungary (~€1.2 billion EUR), El Nasr Company for Intermediate Chemicals new fertilizer complex in Egypt (~€700 million EUR), Qatar Fertilizer Company (QAFCO)’s new blue ammonia plant, NEOM’s Green Hydrogen electrolysis plant in Saudi Arabia (a whopping ~€8 billion investment), among many others.

After a while, I took the position of Head of the Graphical CAD group within Engineering Applications, where I was led and mentored by Heike Wronn. She ran a very tight ship but gave me free rein to exert my influence. I left a big footprint in the way thyssenkrupp Uhde managed their digital twins and digital project execution, and many friends during my time there. It was also at this time that I decided to study my MBA at the WHU – Otto Beisheim School of Management which expanded my horizons by giving me a deeper insight on the business side of things, and also helped me become a better manager and human being.

Phew. You're still here? Good! I told you, you needed that coffee ☕. 

In the end, my partner and I took the decision to return to Chile, where I founded Thomaz Consulting. I am dedicated to using all my gained knowledge towards enhancing project execution in engineering through technology, and most importantly, generating value for our customers. With a focus on digital transformation, human-centricity, and tailored solutions, we aim to empower our customers to reach the next level.

Reach out to me if you want to talk, have a cup of coffee, or schedule an assessment of your digital status!