Meet the team – James Upton

In this instalment we talk to James Upton. James is the Senior CAD Technician at Westbury

In our next instalment we talk to James Upton. James is the Senior CAD Technician at Westbury, but doesn’t just use his skills to create detailed drawings of customers’ planned extensions; he also oversees many other aspects from the project, from start to finish.

What is your job title?
Senior CAD technician

How long have you been working at Westbury?
16 years

What does your job involve, and who do you work closely with?
My job involves carrying out and overseeing the planning applications and detailed working drawings, along with Nick & Gemma, for our customers and tradesman. I initially work closely with the design team taking briefs of the project requirements through both Jonathan & Maggie. As the drawings progress I will work with our clients to finalise design, specifications and various options. I then become more involved with both Sally and Andy ensuring preparations are in place for project commencement. As the project is built on site, we provide continuous support to our builders, fitting teams and tradesman.

Each day might be different, but on a typical day what might you be doing?
Due to the variety of our work, no day is ever the same! Typically I may be at the computer working on a drawing, on the phone to Architects, engineers & clients, pricing up our latest enquiries or when I get the time a visit to site to survey in preparation for the next working drawing.

What aspects of your job / working at Westbury do you most enjoy?
I enjoy the level of detail we work to. Everything we build is built to our drawings, so they have to work. You can be scratching your head one day trying to find the best solution on the computer screen and then to see the finished article in all its glory only a few weeks later is very rewarding. I also enjoy the variety of our projects and working with a great team of people both on- and off-site.

A little bit of background about you – what is your work/study history before you joined Westbury?
I joined Westbury in 1998 following A levels and a further year in Art & Design. I considered University but when I saw the vacancy advertised, working in a design office, for a design and build company, the temptation was too great. I’m still here!

What’s your favourite Westbury project and why?
There are too many to choose from, but if one stood out above all the others it would probably be the two Victorian conservatories for Belle Vue Park in Wales. We had to re-create these from an old black and white photo of how they had once stood. A huge effort went in to the preparations and created a swift and successful project.

Can you think of a highlight (or two) of your time at the company?
When Westbury bought its own joinery workshop, the company made a huge leap forward and the control & benefits were instant. Also, building our own showroom and surveying projects overseas. The biggest highlight is probably seeing just how far the company has grown and developed over the years.

What do you like most about Westbury / what do you think sets Westbury above competitors?
Westbury has a great passion to get the project right, rather than get the project, which is driven by Jonathan and his vision. I think product alone sets us above our competition but in addition to this, the people of Westbury care and want the customer to enjoy the journey as well as the end result.

What’s your favourite building / piece of architecture?
I’m not sure I have a favourite – I simply enjoy the variety of buildings and architecture. The Shard, the pyramids, Sydney Opera house… there’s too much to choose from!