How a Family Legacy Led Damien to a Global Career in Energy

Blog: How a Family Legacy Led Damien to a Global Career in Energy 

The energy sector is always building new projects around the world, and while it takes a village to complete these projects, one thing that is essential to them all is contractors who are willing to relocate pick up their tools when they’re required. In this shifting landscape, contractors have become the adaptable backbone of project delivery, moving where the work is and evolving with every new challenge.

Continuing out blog series of contractor insights, we offer a front-row view of that reality through the eyes of a contractor who’s lived it: from breaking into the industry, to chasing opportunities across energy, to learning that adaptability is the bedrock of contractor life.

Meet Damien Trouillez

From offshore projects in the North Sea to experiencing the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic in Wuhan, Damien Trouillez’s career has taken him around the world as a welding and NDT engineer. 

Today, he works in the energy sector as a materials engineering specialist, supporting complex projects across multiple countries. But his journey begins with the simplicity of childhood.

Damien explains:

“My grandfather was a blacksmith, so he taught me welding.” 

What began as a straightforward introduction to a household trade became the first step in a lifetime of experiences across continents. 

When asked where it all started from, he replied:

"To be perfectly honest, I discovered welding in my garage." 

His experience sparked an early interest in the discipline and laid the foundations for his future career. 

“One step after the other, I went into engineering and graduated into material and welding engineering.”

While welding can seem highly technical from the outside, Damien has always viewed it in simple terms. 

“I'm taking two pieces of material and I'm joining them together,” he says. “Making sure every material is melting together. End of story.”

Navigating a Global Career in Energy

Since entering the industry, Damien has worked across multiple countries and project environments, supporting major energy developments around the world. His career progression and dedication are what stand out the most. 

Damien has been lucky that as a contractor, he’s managed to find work almost immediately after the last project:

“Since 2010, there is no gap between any job position,” he says. “I've always managed to move around projects or companies really swiftly. I'm rather proud of this.”

Being able to find work continuously and relatively easily is a testament to his adaptability and has become one of the defining features of his professional life. 

Working internationally on various projects has also exposed him to different cultures, working practices, and environments. 

“You discover a new culture; you discover new weather!” he says.

However, Damien highlights the importance of remembering the task at hand. No matter where you are in the world, or how exotic the location is, the job and the tasks at hand must always come first.

“People constantly remark, ‘Oh, you're travelling, that's really good.’ But at the end of the day, you're still here for a main purpose, which is to deliver the project”.

In an industry where schedules, logistics, and technical challenges can change rapidly, flexibility is essential, where anything can happen outside of your control – and how you deal with it is down to you.

“You change from a standard mode to a really reactive mode,” he explains.

Life Between Countries 

While international assignments have provided Damien with opportunities to work on major energy projects around the world, they have also shaped his outlook on life. Moving between countries means adapting to new environments, cultures, and customs, and requires the right attitude to be able to thrive. 

“Moving to every new country, you discover new people," he says.

For Damien, one of the most rewarding aspects of working internationally has been the relationships he’s built along the way. Despite frequently relocating to different countries, he has been able to maintain close friendships spanning decades. 

“I'm lucky enough to have friends that I have known for over 25 years now," he says, “Every time I see friends, it's like I've never left.”

While being away and working in foreign locations can have its positives, there are negatives; and that’s being away from home for long periods of time. This is a common complaint among contractors who work away from home on rotations, and which Damien himself admits can be challenging at times. 

“I miss my kids. I miss my wife,” he says.

However, his experiences abroad have taught him to focus on what he can control and to make the most out of every opportunity wherever he ends up.

“Any time I can go, I discover.”

Whether exploring a new city, meeting new people, or experiencing different cultures, or new cuisine, a curious and open-mindedness approach to experiencing new things has remained constant throughout his career. 

Witnessing History in Wuhan 

Among all of Damien’s international assignments, one experience stands out the most, and is one event that truly tested his adaptability to the core. In January 2020, he was working in Wuhan, China, just as the world began to hear reports of a new emerging virus. 

“I was fully immersed in COVID at the time, and I knew I was within the epicenter of where it started,” he recalls.

The sudden change in the atmosphere led to a whirlwind of confusion and uncertainty. 

“I remember like it was yesterday,” he says. “I opened the curtain from my window. Not a single car in sight. Nothing. Everything shut down. From one day to another, a city of 11 million people was shutting down.”

Damien remained confined in his hotel for two weeks as the situation unfolded around him. 

“We started with a hotel full of people, around 300 rooms. The day I left, there were only three rooms occupied.”

Like many people around the world, he was faced with anxiety about the future, not sure what would happen next. 

“You ask yourself, ‘What the hell is going on? Am I going to go back home at some point or what?”

In reflection, the experience reinforced a mindset that has helped him throughout his career. 

“Sometimes it's just the way it is. You have to live with what's happening. You have no control over it whatsoever.”

Again, it highlights the point of what many contractors who successfully work in many locations, moving from one project and country to the next: adaptability – having the ability to take stock of what’s happening in your surroundings and thriving when faced with new conditions, unexpected challenges, or different environments.

Finding Solutions and Moving Forward

That practical outlook is something Damien applies both professionally and personally. Whether managing technical challenges on major energy projects or navigating unexpected events overseas, his focus on finding solutions remains the same. 

“The idea is finding solutions,” he says. “You have to find a solution to minimise the amount of possible delay.”

Damien's story could be a blueprint for any aspiring or current contractor – a path from a childhood fascination with welding to a global career in energy illustrates how foundational skills, adaptability, and a proactive mindset can open doors to extraordinary opportunities. His experience underscores the realities of international contracting: the thrill of discovering new cultures, the challenge of time away from family, and the necessity of staying focused on delivering results no matter the location.

Most powerfully, his account of being in Wuhan as the world changed in early 2020 highlights the importance of resilience and solution-oriented thinking in the face of the unexpected. For recruitment professionals and candidates alike, Damien’s story is both an inspiration and a practical reminder: in the energy sector, success often comes down to showing up, staying flexible, and always finding a way forward.

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