Meet the Team: Adam Cundy, Project Manager

Our Meet the Team blog series highlights the amazing people behind Moixa. A big thank you to Adam, one of our Project Managers, who sat down with us to talk about Moixa, his role and the projects he’s currently working on.

Adam Cundy, Project Manager

Adam has been with Moixa for almost a year and oversees a number of projects and workstreams, including for our work with Alfen and UKPN.

He holds a Bachelors Degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Adelaide and started his career as an engineer and project manager delivering industrial refrigeration systems in Adelaide. He made a career change when moving to London, first working for an energy aggregator enabling larger-scale energy consumers and generators participation in grid services and then joining Moixa.

How did you hear about Moixa and what made you decide to take the role?

A recruiter propositioned me with a new opportunity to work at a company using AI-software to control batteries which I thought was interesting. In terms of deciding to take the role, there was a combination of factors really rather than one specific event. Firstly, I really liked the idea of helping to decarbonise the energy sector and I was very interested in the technology that Moixa was developing. Secondly, my interviews gave me a good feeling about the company and the culture, my final round interview being with Chris Wright, the CTO and co-founder. Thirdly, I found the fact that the founders were still driving the company very reassuring.

What elements of Moixa and our business are you most passionate about? Is it the people, the technology, the software, the customers…?

I’m very passionate about the technology, it really feels like we are building products and services for the future. Being a Project Manager I get to see all the pieces come together to turn ideas into reality which is really amazing. I’m also passionate about the people, Moixa has a great culture and although COVID and remote work has dampened this a little, we still try to make it work.

What happens on your typical workday?

Since COVID and working from home my days have become fairly flexible. On any given day I could be up as early as 6:30am to ride to the gym, or as late as 9:00am to ready myself for work.
Every day starts with a virtual ‘cafezino’ with my fellow Project Managers, after which I’ll go through my email, slack messages, project plans and past minutes to plan my day. My day is usually a mix between meetings, communicating with various teams and my own individual tasks.

Are you currently working on any particularly interesting projects? What excites you about it?

Yes, I’m working on a few interesting projects currently. One is a residential smart electric vehicle charging trial where Moixa’s GridShare Software will decide the best time to charge whilst making the most of solar generation and optimising against their Time-of-Use Tariff. It’s extremely interesting to see what AI-technology is capable of.

What has been your proudest moment since joining Moixa?

I think having our Virtual Power Plant (VPP) of Moixa batteries in the Lewes Newhaven area pass its final tests and go live in UKPN’s flexibility programme was a proud moment. There were a number of challenges including COVID-19 preventing our installations for some months, so to see it come together was a real high.

What is the biggest challenge that you have in your role?

I think accurate planning and keeping tasks to schedule is very challenging, there are a lot of unknowns when you’re developing new technologies.

What are the key skills you need to be successful in your role? And what defines a successful month for you at Moixa?

Organisation and communication are fairly key as you’re responsible for ensuring plans work and are well understood. Also, problem-solving as there will always be issues that must be overcome.

If I can solve all the issues facing a project with the wider team, and keep everything on track to achieve our goals, then I feel like that is a successful month. Results are one of the things that motivate me, I like to feel like my work is meaningful.

What is the most interesting thing you have learnt whilst working at Moixa?

That all the technology to completely decarbonise the energy sector already exists, the application of this tech is the difficult part.

If you had a magic wand, what change would you make to the energy industry?

I could say make solar and wind generate 24/7 but that’s a bit too much. Perhaps, reduce the fossil-fuel burning energy producers, accelerating the transition to renewables and energy storage without breaking the economy.

What steps are you personally taking towards a cleaner future?

I try to live a relatively waste-free life, I avoid products that are harmful to the environment, in particular single-use plastics or excessive packaging. I also ride and walk as much as possible and don’t waste food.

What are your top tips for someone who wants to work at Moixa or in the renewable energy industry?

Educate yourself on the skills and experience required and make sure your education and career path will take you there. Also, make sure you are getting into it for the right reasons, a strong desire to help the planet goes hand in hand with renewables.

A huge thank you to Adam for taking the time out to discuss his life at Moixa. You can connect with Adam on LinkedIn here.

If you would like to work with Moixa on a project, contact our Business Team through moixa.com/contact/.

If you would like to hear more about available roles at Moixa, visit moixa.com/recruitment/