After graduating with an award winning dissertation and presenting at international conferences, Rosanna tells us more about her success since joining Reheat as a Consultant.
"It's great to join a company that not only specialises in areas similar to my skillset, but also one that is interested in my personal values"
I graduated from The University of St Andrews with a First-Class degree in Geography in 2020, joining Reheat as a Graduate Consultant shortly after. Despite this happening during the Covid-19 pandemic, which was extremely challenging, I was pleased to be able to get my career off to the right start!
At university, my dissertation was a spatial analysis of biogas feedstocks and markets to optimally site biogas plants and maximise efficiencies. It was awarded the University of St Andrews’ Mathieson Prize for distinguished work on the Geography of Scotland and also nominated for the Royal Geographic Society for Quantitative Methods Research Group Prize. Since then, my dissertation has attracted international attention, and I presented it online at the Research and Innovation Hub part of the World Biogas Expo in 2020. More recently, I was invited to present it at the World Sustainable Energy Days in Austria.
I came across the consultancy role at Reheat through a link between the company and St Andrews. Reheat were consulting on a biomass plant owned by the university, and they subsequently advertised that they had a graduate role available to the university’s Geography Department. I was immediately interested in applying as it hit the mark in terms of applying my studies and my passion for bioenergy in a real-world setting.
I was delighted when I was offered the role, joining Reheat in August 2020. It's great to join a company that not only specialises in areas similar to my skillset, but also one that is interested in my personal values and emphasised the importance of their company values too. Discussing values at my interview was incredibly refreshing, and it reinforced that this was the right move for me.
Reheat was half the size it is now when I joined, but it was clear that the company punched above its weight in terms of projects and clients, and I have enjoyed being part of its successful growth and welcoming many new colleagues in the last few years.
My role started out working across the business particularly supporting our heat supply and maintenance contracts but also other consultancy projects. This exposed me to a variety of areas that are required when delivering low carbon heat including optimal facility management and operation, contractual obligations, and welfare of residents. I was also able to engage with the engineering team, getting to grips with the more hands-on areas of the business.
I’ve enjoyed getting to know clients and identifying opportunities for them, such as the Heat Network Efficiency Scheme (HNES) for which I helped a number of clients to secure nearly £500,000 in grant money. I was only 18 months into my time at Reheat, so it was extremely pleasing to be able to have led on and delivered such a large project for clients so early into my career - and I’m now working on the next phase of HNES too.
I’m really interested in how we can use sustainable biomass resources to deliver low-carbon, regenerative solutions. Therefore, I’m proud to be managing the Northwoods Innovation Programme which is supporting woodland owners to bring unmanaged woodland back into management. My role at Reheat allows me to apply my skills across biomass supply chains and markets, not only for bioenergy but also for other end uses, to really help tackle the challenges that face us.
In moving to Reheat, I also took the opportunity to move to Northumberland and live in a rural setting. I thoroughly enjoy living in Alnwick and the lifestyle it offers. I’m also a big rugby and tennis fan, having joined local clubs where there’s a fantastic community. Being so close to the beautiful coastline here is also a huge bonus.
