Semester abroad, Dubai EXPO and Worthy Farm made studying a “special and rewarding experience”

A PhD student whose studies took him to Singapore, Dubai and even Glastonbury Festival is graduating this week as part of the Class of 2024.

Dominic Dattero-Snell will graduate with a PhD in Engineering after successfully defending his thesis on electric vehicle retrofitting for decarbonising transport in agricultural settings.

During his PhD, Dominic was part of a team who developed a ‘drop in’ kit that converts old Land Rover Defenders into fully electric vehicles.

The product, which debuted at Glastonbury Festival in 2022, was the result of a unique collaboration between Electrogenic, Worthy Farm and scientists at Cardiff University.

Used at the festival ever since, the kit powers a fleet of Defenders to help service the needs of more than 200,000 festival goers who descend on the site annually.

This year, the vehicles were used in the Greenpeace Field and by the Croissant Neuf crew.

For Dominic, the project was a standout moment from his PhD and one he still thinks about today.

Another of Dominic’s PhD highlights was showcasing his research on the world stage at the EXPO 2020 in Dubai.

Dominic organised a programme of workshops from researchers across Cardiff University on the future of travel, inviting audiences to learn, debate and present their ideas and views on how the electrification of travel could impact them in years to come.

He said: “Helping to secure funding for and organising our research group’s workshop and presentations at the Dubai EXPO was another special and rewarding experience.

“It took me very much outside of my comfort zone. We needed to work closely with the Department for International Trade, Welsh Government and local stakeholders to craft the event for a wide range of audiences.

“Overall, the response to the workshops was incredibly positive and I particularly valued the large number of local schools who attended. It was also beneficial to network internationally with entities working on transport decarbonisation.”

Now a consultant at Arup, Dominic continues to focus on projects relating to transport decarbonisation.

“I’m currently involved in a number of bus decarbonisation projects which have leveraged my knowledge of electric vehicle retrofitting from my doctorate,” he said.

“Zero emission buses are a hot topic at the moment with a number of authorities considering franchising as an operating model, including here in Wales.

“My role within Arup is quite varied, multi-disciplinary, and can often require independent research. So, my PhD provided me with the skillset to be comfortable in this type of environment – especially as my research was multi-disciplinary as well.”

Dominic also completed his undergraduate studies in electrical and electronic engineering at Cardiff University, spending a semester abroad in Singapore studying at Nanyang Technological University, something he would recommend to others thinking about going to university.

“If the opportunity arose to work in Singapore again, I would be very excited to go. My knowledge of the transport sector and its decarbonisation is very transferable to other regions. Arup also has an office there and regularly offers overseas assignments, so who knows what the future holds.”