Making a career change he trained as a surveyor and technical representative for a timber preservative and damp–proofing company and then spent many years as a technical and architectural representative for an international glass and glazing company, working mainly in the commercial sector. For almost a decade before teaching full time he changed direction to become a technical and architectural representative for a national Aircrete manufacturer. He has plenty of experience attending site, working on design details with architects, engineers, quantity surveyors and contractors.
After spending many years teaching part time at the College of Technology at Southend–on–Sea, he took up a full time lecturing post at Barking College in the late 1980s. He has a particular interest in environmental and sustainable development issues. Building is not just a career for him it is an obsession according to his wife, Ann. Even when on holiday he is always going off to look at the local building sites.