Business Details
10 Years
experience
Innovative Engineering Design for Offshore Renewables
Established in 2016, Blackfish Engineering Design Engineering Design has emerged as a leading UK provider of engineering solutions for offshore renewable energy sectors. Our team combines over 50 years of cumulative experience from founding directors to deliver mechanical systems design, structural analysis, and project management services. Specialising in tidal stream, wave energy, and offshore wind operations, we apply rigorous engineering methodologies to solve complex challenges while maintaining a strong focus on sustainability.Our expertise spans concept design through to product realisation, supported by advanced tools like ANSYS Mechanical and Autodesk Inventor. With a proven track record in test rig development and field operations, we maintain a clean health and safety record while delivering innovative solutions that reduce levelized energy costs. Our multidisciplinary approach integrates systems engineering principles and practical site experience to ensure technical excellence across all project phases.
Services
Mechanical Design Engineering
Structural Engineering Analysis
Systems Engineering
Project Management
Finite Element Analysis
Design/Make Services
Assembly & Test Support
Due Diligence Assessments
Details
- Year established: 2016
Highlights and features
- Our founding directors collectively hold over 50 years of offshore engineering experience
- We specialise in mechanical systems design for challenging offshore environments
- Our team applies advanced structural analysis techniques using ANSYS Mechanical
- We maintain a clean health and safety record across all field operations
- We deliver complete engineering solutions from concept through to realisation
What people say
Great team of engineers
Expert knowledge
Clean HSE record
Successful project delivery
Practical problem-solving
Services
Mechanical Design Engineering
Our core mechanical systems design services utilise Autodesk Inventor for complex CAD modelling and detailed engineering drawings. We combine advanced software tools with traditional calculation methods to deliver precision-engineered solutions. Our PDM system ensures quality control throughout the product lifecycle from concept to manufacturing documentation.
Structural Engineering Analysis
We conduct comprehensive structural assessments using ANSYS Mechanical and Autodesk Nastran for linear and non-linear analysis. Our expertise covers multiple load cases including fatigue assessment, transport stresses, and operational conditions for steel, alloy, and composite materials in offshore environments.
Systems Engineering
Drawing on aerospace industry methodologies, we implement systems engineering principles including FMEA, fault tree analysis, and requirements management. Our approach ensures complete compliance with technical specifications through rigorous validation and testing protocols across all project phases.
Project Management
Our APMP-qualified team manages engineering projects from concept to prototype, specialising in TRL progression. We combine technical expertise with practical site experience to deliver risk-managed solutions, maintaining a clean HSE record across offshore operations and field testing activities.
Finite Element Analysis
We perform detailed finite element analysis for complex geometries with multiple connection points. Our capabilities include topology optimisation, submodelling techniques, and fatigue life assessment to validate structural integrity under operational conditions in marine environments.
People
Jon Powell
Managing Director
Systems engineering and project management expert with extensive offshore renewables experience. Leads strategic direction while maintaining hands-on technical involvement in complex engineering projects across tidal, wave, and wind sectors.
Tim Warren
Operations Director
Design engineering and project management specialist with deep expertise in offshore wind sector challenges. Oversees operational delivery while contributing technical leadership to complex engineering solutions and client engagements.
Tom Adcock
Senior Design Engineer
Experienced design engineer with specialist knowledge in systems engineering and mechanical design. Contributes technical excellence to offshore renewable energy projects, applying advanced engineering principles to complex design challenges.
Mark Houle
Senior Design Engineer
Senior mechanical design engineer with extensive offshore renewables experience. Provides technical leadership in CAD modelling, structural analysis, and systems integration for challenging marine engineering applications.
Nick Del-Greco
Senior Design Engineer
Versatile design engineer with broad experience across offshore renewable energy projects. Specialises in mechanical systems development and technical problem-solving for complex engineering challenges in marine environments.
Questions
What offshore renewable energy sectors do you specialise in?
We specialise in tidal stream, wave energy, and offshore wind sectors, providing engineering solutions across all these domains since our formation in 2016.
What engineering services do you offer?
We provide mechanical design engineering, structural analysis, systems engineering, project management, finite element analysis, and design-make services for offshore renewable energy projects.
Do you have experience with offshore wind projects?
Yes, we apply our extensive tidal and wave energy expertise to offshore wind applications, particularly in floating wind technology and vessel charging systems.
Can you handle complete engineering projects?
Our team manages projects from concept through to prototype, with proven capability in TRL progression and complete system realisation for marine energy technologies.
What design tools do you use?
We primarily use Autodesk Inventor for CAD and ANSYS Mechanical for finite element analysis, supported by traditional calculation methods and custom scripting tools.
Do you provide on-site engineering support?
Yes, we offer comprehensive assembly and test support including site documentation, risk assessments, and practical field engineering for offshore installations.
