Industry Focus – with Kabbe Njie

A. I am currently the Principal Fire Engineer at Heathrow, the UK's busiest airport. I’ve been there for 7 months, setting up and overseeing a small team of specialist engineers responsible for fire risk management and fire engineering prevention strategies across the estate. It’s a city within a city, with every risk profile imaginable on the campus. We cover life safety, property protection and business reliance/continuity objectives. There is a wide and diverse portfolio of buildings including the terminals of course, planes, trains, automobiles, tunnels and a wonderful array of people. It’s really a brilliant place to work and I would highly recommend it to engineers from any discipline.

It would be remiss of me if I didn’t mention that I’m also a Trustee of the CABE Benevolent Fund, which is here to assist CABE members, retired members and their family members, or dependants, in times of hardship (see more at cbuilde.com).

A. My journey began by gaining extensive on-the-job experience and training in a variety of regulatory fire safety roles at the London Fire Brigade, where I worked for 16 years. I started as a Fire Safety Inspecting Officer based in Westminster, which I absolutely loved before moving on to manage the statutory Building Regulations consultation process on behalf of the Assistant Commissioner of Fire Safety and building control bodies across the country.

I then joined the Fire Engineering Group at Brigade HQ. FEG are a small group of dedicated, specialist officers who seek to create and foster positive change within London and nationally through their work with the National Fire Chiefs Council and other industry representative bodies, such as the London District Surveyors’ Association. They focus on the complex fire safety challenges that occur in London, ranging from residential buildings, large infrastructure and transport projects and events − a wonderful place to learn given the diversity of workstreams that you are exposed to.

Whilst working there, I was sponsored to undertake a part-time day-release degree in Fire Risk Engineering from Glasgow Caledonian University, which took me 3 years to complete. Sadly, this course is no longer being offered there but at institutions such as the University of Central Lancashire and Ulster University, fire engineering degrees are still being offered at undergrad and postgrad level.

The blending of formal studies and practical on-the-job experience was invaluable as I was able to apply my learning directly in the workplace. There has been a long-standing skills shortage in fire engineering so there are always plenty of opportunities for employment and further development in the industry.

A. Initially, I aimed to solely work in fire safety and fire safety management but hadn't pinpointed a specific role to aspire to. Thankfully for me, opportunities arose and I was fortunate to work on several significant projects at the Brigade which led me to specialise in fire engineering and building safety.

I left the Brigade in 2020, on the cusp of the Covid-19 pandemic, and went to offer support in social housing for local authorities and registered social landlords. I lead on their post-Grenfell recoveries, building safety improvement strategies and fire safety programmes in readiness for enactment of the then Building Safety Bill and other regulatory changes. A challenging environment no doubt, but I was able to put my technical competencies to great use and further enhance my leadership, coaching and mentoring skills, which has been very beneficial from a career development perspective. I guess it has been a combination of well-thought-out career moves and seizing the opportunities presented to me that brought me to the role I’m in today.

A. Yes, I have had some great mentors during my career who emphasised the importance of continuous learning, formulating your own opinions and networking. Some remain my friends to today.

The best advice I received: never stop asking questions, always seek out challenging projects that push your boundaries and work on plugging your knowledge gaps at every opportunity. I try to make time to mentor and support others these days, just as I was encouraged along the way. Without the support I received, I might not be where I am today, and for that I’m very grateful.

A former mentee of mine recently told me that they’re about to enrol on the fire engineering degree programme at UCLan, which I am really happy about – I’m so proud of their career journey thus far.

A. I’ve always been intrigued by building design and how fire engineering principles can be integrated into existing architecture to further extend the life-cycle of the building and its use. Exploring this intersection could be an exciting future challenge, blending safety with enhanced environmental responsibility perhaps..?

I am enjoying what I currently do though and would encourage others to look at a career in fire engineering or fire and building safety. My focus this year is to complete my Chartership journey via CABE and the Engineering Council; I’ve been interim IEng- registered for a while now and feel I’m ready to complete the next stage as there are very few Chartered Fire Engineers currently in the UK.

Longer term, I would like to go into lecturing in order to pass on the knowledge and understanding I’ve acquired over time. I have definitely learnt a few things..! I would also like to play a part in improving the fire and building environments in Africa at some point in the future, as the numbers of fatalities and serious injuries on the continent are way too high.

Further guidance:

• The Institution of Fire Engineers (ife.org.uk) states that fire engineers “put out fires, design products, conduct investigations, assess risks and explore behaviour patterns” and, in essence, “they protect people, property and the environment from the effects of fire”.
• As well as an IFE Recognised Training Course − the Fire Safety Practitioner Certificate − CABE offers several training courses that cover all aspects of fire safety and are ideal for design engineers, building managers, fire safety professionals and building control officers. Take a look at how these options could further your career at cbuilde.com
• Kabbe mentions Chartership with CABE and the Engineering Council; the Engineering Council is the UK’s regulatory body for engineering professionals. It holds a national Register of engineers and technicians who have been assessed to internationally recognised standards of competence, and you can work towards being awarded the following titles: Engineering Technician (EngTech), Incorporated Engineer (IEng), Chartered Engineer (CEng, Kabbe’s goal) and Information and Communications Technology Technician (ICT Tech). CABE is licensed to register its members at EngTech, IEng and CEng grades – see the detail at cbuilde.com and engc.org.uk