Graeme Burnett learnt his trade studying at a North-East university and is now an integral figure at a global airline. He tells Deputy Business Editor Steven Hugill how the region was an important factor in helping his career take off and why it must preserve its aviation links

ADORNED in his university robes, Graeme Burnett smiles proudly for the camera. He is receiving an honorary doctorate of business administration from Teesside University, in Middlesbrough, for his achievements in the oil and aviation industry.

However, the 59-year-old is quick to point out where the real praise should be aimed.

Mr Burnett completed a chemical engineering course at the former Teesside Polytechnic, graduating with a first-class degree in 1976, which gave him a platform to move into employment.

His career took in engineering construction firm Foster Wheeler, before he joined Lindsey Oil Refinery in 1980, which subsequently merged with Total Petrochemicals.

His work in the sector caught the attention of US Delta Airlines, which, after being formed as an aerial crop dusting company in 1924, now flies more than 160 million passengers every year.

He moved to the company after it acquired an oil refinery in the US and wanted someone with the necessary skills to help operate it. But these successes, Mr Burnett says, would not have been possible without the crucial guidance and support from the university.

He said: “There are three key parts to my time in Teesside. The course I was on, the quality of the education I received, and the professors who taught me.

“However, another point I look back on was my time in industry, which the university helped facilitate.

“That really helped me mature and give me an idea of what I wanted to do and, conversely, what I didn’t, and it was great exposure.

“The size of the university was very important because the classrooms were just big enough. You had great access to your tutors – you weren’t a just a face in the crowd.

“That allowed you to build a relationship with your professors and gave me the all-round skills, things like communication and problem solving, that make you a good employee.

“I was given the chance to go to Babcock and Wilcox, an engineering and construction firm, and also went to the Harwell nuclear research establishment.

Those were really prestigious places for me to go and another example of how the university helped me get started in my career. Working in these places caught people’s attention.”

Mr Burnett, originally from Nottingham, says the existing Government drive to boost apprenticeships is laudable, but believes a greater emphasis on marrying education and industries together would yield even greater rewards.

He said: “A problem that has remained for decades seems to be a challenge between education and industry, and courses offered are sometimes not the ones the marketplace needs.

“An area may see demand outpace supply, so more people go into education to get into that sector.

“However, sometimes by the time they come out of education that cycle has passed.

“There needs to be a system between the Government, industry, and the university to offer education that is going to find a home in the workforce.

There has to be a harmonised way of doing things, so people know what industry needs.

“What also must happen is that a three-year or four-year degree course incorporates a wider generic skills set and training in communication and management – you can do a lot more than what your degree would indicate.”

Mr Burnett also supported plans from Durham Tees Valley Airport to revitalise the site by selling land for 400 homes, which bosses say would fund the redevelopment of the terminal building, and pay for aircraft hangars warehouses and offices.

The airport hopes the rent from the expansion of the Northside Employment Park would return the business to profit after a £4m loss last year and secure the future of daily flights to Aberdeen and Amsterdam.

He said: “It is something that is a problem for a number of regional airports in the US.

“For a region such as Teesside and its airport, there are three key factors that are needed for industry and business development.

“One is that you need a good workforce, and that definitely applies to the region.

“You also need high-quality education institutions, which, again it has, and you need an airport.

“They are the key ingredients for success and anything they can do to keep Durham Tees Valley operational is only a good thing.”