3rd Class Power Engineer - Brett

15 stories every day

Making sure everything at the Poplar River Power Station is running smoothly requires a lot of walking for Brett Winter.

For 21-year-old Brett Winter, growing up around Coronach meant he was never far from Poplar River Power Station (PRPS). Now a third class power engineer, Winter is learning the ins and outs of one of the province's largest coal-fired power plants.

Everyday you seem to learn something new

Much of Winter's day is spent watching the station's vitals on computer screens. Making sure everything is running properly involves more than staring at monitors though. Every day, he treks up all 15 stories of PRPS and back down again, stopping to check specific pieces of equipment along the way.

After over a year on the job, it's a path Winter knows by heart.

"You definitely get your exercise," he says.

It's a physical task, but much better than having a fan trip or losing a hydraulic system, which can mean having to restart one of the generators.

Education and training

It took Winter two years at the Medicine Hat College to get where he is now. Future power engineers train in a wide variety of skills and disciplines including drafting, instrumentation, thermodynamics and administration.

Why SaskPower?

"You definitely get paid for what you know," he says.

For power engineers like Winter, foresight and the ability to think quickly is what it's all about.

"Everyday you seem to learn something new," he says.