My Castlet Stories – From RAF Engineer to Site and Service Test Engineer at Castlet: Meet Tom Austen
After serving nine years in the Royal Air Force, Tom Austen was looking for a role that would combine technical problem-solving with the opportunity to travel and experience new challenges.
Since joining Castlet as a Site and Service Test Engineer, he has travelled across the globe, supporting customers, commissioning equipment, and ensuring systems continue to operate at peak performance.
In this edition of My Castlet Stories, we sat down with Tom to discuss his journey from the RAF to Castlet, the rewarding projects he has been involved in, and his thoughts on the future of the industry.
What is your role and what does it involve?
I work as a Site and Service Test Engineer, which is essentially a two-part role.
The site and service side of the job involves travelling to customer sites around the world to install, commission, maintain and upgrade equipment. It also includes diagnostics, repairs and providing remote technical support when required.
The testing side of my role focuses on the products we manufacture here at Castlet. This is primarily testing control panels and transformer rectifiers, but it can also involve testing individual components, CAN openers and specialist test equipment.
What inspired you to start your role at Castlet?
Before joining Castlet, I spent nine years serving in the RAF. After leaving the forces, I worked briefly at a pet food factory, but I quickly realised I missed travelling and the variety that came with my previous role. Working at the same site every day wasn’t for me.
Castlet offered exactly what I was looking for – and more. Since joining, I have had the opportunity to travel to countries I never imagined I would visit, including Brazil and South Korea.
What is your expertise in the industry?
At the moment, my main areas of expertise are testing and diagnostics. However, I am continually developing my knowledge and have recently been learning more about the networking side of our equipment.
Looking ahead, I am also keen to become more involved in transformer design, which is an area I am particularly interested in developing further.
What has been your most rewarding career moment to date?
Across my entire career, one of the most rewarding experiences was during my time in Afghanistan, where I was responsible for keeping multiple generators running to power our compound, hangar and critical IT systems.
Since joining Castlet, the most rewarding experience has been working on a project for a customer in Brazil. I became involved in the project early on during the production stage, and I was able to see it all the way through to testing and final commissioning.
It was the first project I had worked on from start to finish, so seeing it successfully completed and operational was a real achievement.
What sets Castlet apart?
What stands out to me is just how much we punch above our weight. We’re a relatively small company based on a modest industrial estate, yet we operate on a truly global scale.
Castlet exports internationally, and our products are used across a wide range of industries, from advanced manufacturing processes and power generation through to the latest generation of military aircraft. The scale and impact of what we do is something that continually impresses me.
What are your predictions for the future of the industry? Do you expect any challenges, and how will they be overcome?
One thing Castlet has demonstrated throughout its 50-year history is its ability to adapt and evolve alongside changing industry demands, and I believe that will continue long into the future.
The biggest challenge is often predicting global events and understanding how they will affect supply chains, customers and suppliers. For example, events such as the closure of major trade routes, including the Strait of Hormuz, can have significant knock-on effects throughout the industry.
However, Castlet has consistently shown resilience and adaptability, and I am confident that the company will continue to overcome future challenges in the same way it always has – by remaining flexible, innovative and focused on customer needs.
Get in touch with Tom and the team today to find out how we can help you with bespoke aerospace, ESP or industrial solutions.
