Engineer brings FEA expertise to resistor manufacturer.

To mark another successful year, power resistor manufacturer Cressall Resistors has appointed Damiano Natali as research and development and finite element analysis (FEA) engineer. Natali relocated from Genoa (I) to join the Leicester-based company (GB) after working as a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) engineer for three years. He also has a PhD in Fluid Dynamics and Environmental Processes from the University of Genoa.

Damiano Natali

Since joining the team in November 2015, Natali has already developed a complex piece of R&D software that allows the department to accurately record test voltage waveforms. The software increases the productivity of the testing process, enhances the reliability of the outcomes and increases the precision with which Cressall meets customer specifications. The software, coined by Natali as CR Lightning also allows Cressall engineers to quickly verify that tests comply with BS EN 60060 requirements.

In a constantly evolving marketplace, ensuring its product range is both cost-effective and flexible enough to satisfy its customers' technical and commercial requirements is one of Cressall's main focuses. To stay ahead, the resistor manufacturer recently invested in advanced software packages, including Ansys Workbench. This, along with the guidance of Cressall engineers, will help Natali develop Cressall's innovative products even further, as well as optimising their existing product range.

"So far, Damiano has had an enormous impact on the Cressall team," explained Andrew Keith, engineering director of Cressall Resistors. "Damiano has a wide skill set, ranging from the ability to accurately analyse raw materials, to conducting advanced CFD operations effectively.

"Damiano joins the team at an exciting time, and the biggest impact of his initial work will come in the next few months, when he will use our 3D modelling and FEA software to optimise an existing design as part of one of our largest projects to date."

In his spare time, Natali is an enthusiastic cyclist and is keen to tackle some of Leicester's toughest cycling routes, including Beacon Hill and Polly Botts Lane.

"Cressall is one of the leading manufacturers for resistor production and its worldwide customer base and wide range of product requests was certainly appealing when considering the job prospect," commented Natali. "At Cressall, I have the opportunity to apply my mechanical engineering background to a wide spectrum of applications, such as the seismic analysis of resistor enclosures, to wind loading on high-stacked banks."

@CressallR #PAuto