Brian Hopwood, a Technical Level 3, marked his 35th anniversary with Cubic this year. Brian is responsible for the Corrective and Preventive maintenance of Cubic gate lines and associated fare collection equipment for one of our customers, UK National Rail. He also assists fellow engineers with Tech Support over the phone or on-site for many new gate installation projects.
Throughout his career, Brian has supported many transit agencies, including Northern Rail, Avanti, Transport for Wales, Tran Pennine and others.
We had the opportunity to chat with Brian as he shared fascinating stories about his life at Cubic, his most exciting achievements, his career path, and his never-too-late advice for finding your way.
1. What made you apply for your first job at Cubic?
I started working for Firstpoint Ltd. in February 1990, where we were field maintenance subcontractors to Thorn Transit Systems, which designed and built the APTIS ticket machines used by British Rail. When Thorn was acquired by Westinghouse Cubic (as it was then), my career began with Cubic.
2. What is your favourite part about your job?
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I enjoy tackling jobs of varying difficulties and coming up with solutions and repairs that are not always obvious or easy to fix. Fixing problems and having a happy customer are often very satisfying.
3. What do you like the most about working at Cubic?
What I like most about Cubic is its simplicity. I get so much satisfaction from solving customer issues with my knowledge/experience or working with other departments to resolve problems. It’s good to know someone in Cubic can always help – a team leader, a system support or other colleagues.
4. What do you see as your top 3 accomplishments at Cubic so far?
(i) Became Tech Level 3.
(ii) Passed a “Train The Trainer” course, which qualifies me to train staff and fellow Cubes on Cubic Products.
(iii) Reached 35 years of service with Cubic.
5. What are the top 3 exciting moments you have had with Cubic?
(i) Race against the clock: Before the project's go-live date at Stockport, I resolved an issue with barcoding with one gate line due to a network error. Why was this exciting? We were against the clock, and I didn’t know much about barcoding then, but making both SCUs a barcode server resolved the issue. We had a successful launch on time!
(ii) Customer compliment: I received a compliment from Avanti Trains email on a repair for Stockport via email. For those who work in the customer support field, you know it makes your day.
(iii) Part of a Big Project Go-Live Launch: When Cubic installed the gate lines at Birmingham New Street, I was among a few Cubes asked to be on-site to “nursemaid” the gates. It was the biggest Go Live I had ever attended, and the project scale induced a sense of pride in the company I worked for.
6. What is your top advice for handling obstacles and challenges?
(i) Team collaboration is essential and the foundation stone in so much of Cubic's everyday life. No person should be an island. That is what we should all aim towards.
(ii) Project Delivery: I have mentioned working on “Go Live” projects with the installation team, especially with Northern Rail & Avanti. This has often been challenging and a learning curve, but Team Collaboration has always been a part of it.
(iii) Career Path: I enjoy fixing things and working with tools—cycles, motorbikes, cars, computers and so on. I’m not a management person. I think I have always best served the company by being on the tools and being a Tech 3 where I can support colleagues, customers and Cubic. So, I am where I want to be, doing what I love best. And I am happy with that. Expectations? More of this, please.
7. Any advice you’d share with our entry-level colleagues just starting their journey?
The first 15 years of my working life did not settle down. I didn’t engage with school, and school didn’t engage with me. There are lots of reasons behind that (dyspraxia being one reason). However, I found something I wanted to do when I went to college (night school) in the late 80s to do City & Guilds Motor Vehicle Craft Studies, and I was reasonably good at it. I’ve been back to college since. And here I am now, a Technician Level 3. If you knew my academic level at school, this would have surprised my younger me. No, I’m not the most excellent achiever, but I'm more than happy with my achievements.