Eddie joined Queens in 1983 under the Youth Attachment Scheme(YAS). After a year he was transferred to the QUB trainee Scheme. He attained an ONC and then HNC in Civil Engineering in the 1980's. In the following years he has built up a vast amount of skills and experience in Material Testing. This includes understanding the principles of different tests, why they are done, how different materials perform under test, what outcomes to expect and all carried out to whatever standard is required, mostly British, European or American, depending on who the tests are for. This all requires vast experience in the operation of a multitude of different test equipment, both fixed and portable for site testing and learning how to operate new innovative non-destructive test apparatus in recent years. Working under the direction of a dedicated Academic, Dr Barry Rankin, conducted a huge amount of commercial testing, ranging from the regular basic test of concrete cubes and steel rebars to far more complex individual tests, eg floor slab load tests, some at the invitation of HSE investigated accidents.