Dan Cross has recently completed 35 years of service with the University.
I like the informal atmosphere and that people, at whatever level, can and do contribute positively. I’ve overwhelmingly found the researchers to be great people to work with and it feels good to be a useful part of a team and to have one’s skills needed and appreciated. In the end, I find fixing problems is very rewarding! Dan Cross
Starting in 1987 at the Engineering Department in town and then the Whittle Lab, Dan subsequently joined the Cavendish in 1994.
He began his Cavendish journey within the PCS group during an exciting time for them: carrying out high strain rate impact testing by firing coke-can sized projectiles at sample materials using air or helium at pressures of up to 450 atmospheres and speeds of 1000 metres per second. In his own words “It was proper ‘Boys’ Own’ violent science!”
Based upon this experience of extreme conditions, he naturally progressed into his current role at the Cavendish as the Cryogenics Facility Manager, where he is responsible for the production of liquefied helium and nitrogen for experimental use. As he shares, “The facility is on an industrial scale, and certainly was, and probably still is, the largest in a UK University, highly complex and very specialised.” Over the years his technical, analytical and logical thinking skills have helped him to manage the facility efficiently, including setting up of a new state-of-the-art computer-controlled turbine expander liquefier and associated plant in 2010. During this period, Dan’s role further evolved into taking on managerial responsibilities. He has been instrumental in modernising many of the working practices to keep better track of resources and data and there’s now a large IT based element to running the facility. All this has positively impacted the efficiency and productivity of the facility, allowing more research to be conducted per £. Under his supervision, the facility supplies helium and nitrogen to nearly every non-theoretical group in the Cavendish, as well as many other University’s Departments, Addenbrooke’s (Medical Research Council and Cancer Research) and some commercial research institutions like Epoch Wires, Hitachi and Toshiba.
He further tells us, “I like the informal atmosphere and that people, at whatever level, can and do contribute positively. I’ve overwhelmingly found the researchers to be great people to work with and it feels good to be a useful part of a team and to have one’s skills needed and appreciated. In the end, I find fixing problems is very rewarding!”
Just like the liquefier that runs continuously, Dan continues to fix problems and support researchers in achieving their goals at the Cavendish and beyond.
Image Credit: Dan Cross