Alexander (Sandy) Robertson shared his memories of studying Mechanical and Production Engineering at Dundee Technical College, including his accommodation in "digs", and using early computers. He shares anecdotes about lectures and various lecturers during his time there.

0.00 Interview started
0.20 Studied Mechanical and Production Engineering – father owned a garage in Nairn
1.10 Showed us his certificate
1.25 Donald Macgregor, his friend from Nairn, did civil engineering
1.50 Things going on at the time - Vietnam War. NCR (National Cash Registers) laying off staff in Dundee
2.30 Talked about new technology that he used – showed a slide rule that he used as a calculator.
3.40 “Everything was new technology to me”
4.20 Funny memories – filling out form for new course, someone wrote “occupation - Poet Laureate”, so he was challenged to recite a poem to everyone else.
5.30 There were hundreds of engineers but they all had to do a common course in Chemistry. Chemists don’t normally do complicated formulae (unlike physicists and engineers), but one day when Dr Hargreaves did, the engineering students all cheered. Dr Hargreaves turned around and said “Don’t cheer! Just throw cigarettes!”
6.40 Tutorials – one student trying to impress his tutor, trying fancy equations to solve a problem – nothing worked. An old tutor in “Plus fours” (trousers tucking into socks) suggested using Ohms Law – “you’ve tried everything else, even though it won’t work you might as well try it.”
8.00 Meeting a support tutor, who asks the students how they’re doing. One student had no problems, but the support Tutor kept asking, “Are you sure?”. Eventually, in desperation – “Maybe you could listen to some of my problems.”.
8.50 1966 college computer. I remember a lab on programming the digital computer. Paper tape of an inch wide, punched with a programme. Basic stuff. Another computer we used more and earlier – an analogue computer. More of a continuous computer, plugging in wires to create circuits (like an old telephone exchange).
11.20 At Aston in Birmingham, he used a computer with punch cards. In early days in Dundee, the computer was huge – filled a whole room.
12.20 AR asked Stuart and Aaron if they used computers much. They used computers a lot – for technology, and English for example.
13.30 Societies – “I had friends that played rugby. I don’t remember being in any societies. We had parties, get togethers, played golf. Societies were not something we had in the 60s.”
14.40 Accommodation – we had to find our own accommodation. Stayed in a Church of Scotland Hostel on Hilltown. Had a cubicle. Amongst other people – bakers, plumbers etc. The baker made the porridge early in the morning – hard once they got to it. Then he stayed in an apartment (flat) with his friend Donald MacGregor, then he was in digs (shared rented accommodation) with a schoolteacher at Kirktown Secondary School, Miss Wallace – Kirktown won Top of the Form in 1967 – she coached that team. Knowledgeable person that helped him get through his final year at the College
17.20 Not been back in Dundee since 1970. He thinks the accommodation has changed. Courses have changed. Very different now.

Alastair Scott speaks about his experience as a student at the Dundee Technical College, how classes used to be, about the courses he took and what Dundee and the campus used to look like. He spoke about his role in the family business and how the jute industry provided him with a lot of travelling opportunities (India, Pakistan, Thailand).
He talks about lecturers he remembers and the connections he still has with Abertay University and his role in the Dundee Heritage Trust. He then talked about all the different companies he worked for and other involvements he had (board member in America, part of a counsel).
Alastair speaks about his experience with synthetic fibres (e.g. polypropylene), and his involvement with the university for the creation of the jute museum at Verdant Works.

1:00 Jute technology course at the Dundee Technical College
3:00 Describes courses he took (textiles, management)
4:00 Practical and theoretical work, jute as an important part of education in Dundee
5:00 His role in the Dundee Heritage Trust (which owns a lot of the College's training machinery now)
6:00 College Lecturers that he remembers and people he stayed in contact with
8:00 Connections from now with Abertay (scholarship)
10:00 His time in the jute industry (travelling opportunities)
11:00 Use of jute replaced by plastics
12:00 His company producing artificial grass, and a story about how it led to him sharing a sports field with Whitney Houston
14:00 Other career opportunities it has provided to him (member of an American textiles board, member of a council)
15:00 Social life, social areas at the College
18:00 Differences in the Campus and university back then and now

• the use of jute
  20:00 Archway story
  21:00
  23:00 Producing polypropylene + how it took companies a while to get used to it, with
  24:00 The Tech's involvement in research was limited - jute companies were secretive about their processes and in competition with each other
  27:00 College machinery for the jute production and his involvement in setting up the Verdant Works jute museum
  29:00 The Jute industry’s legacy

Ahmar Ghafoor speaks about his time studying Mechatronics at Dundee Institute of Technology / Abertay University. He speaks about the societies he was involved with - Dungeons and Dragons, Sci-Fi society; his project to design and build a computer; the changes that university status brought; how the university has changed since then; his subsequent career working in mobile technology.

0.00 Interview starts – Ahmar Ghafoor, former student at Abertay, student during the transition to University status
What did you study and why?
Went to do an HND in Electrical engineering because failed GCSEs
0.50 Abertay was the first place to do Mechatronics – MSc sponsored by NCR and so was a joint Abertay and Dundee Uni degree
2.00 Was there anything else you ever considered studying?
Wanted to go to Warwick but family moved to Dundee, really wanted to do Mechatronics
3.20 What groups were you involved with?
Dungeons and Dragons; some people imported episodes of Star Trek: Next Generation from America and they’d all watch them in the pub on the big screen
4.30 What’s your proudest moment/achievement?
Design a computer and it worked first time, completed his MSc project in 2 weeks
5.10 Did you notice anything change when Dundee Institute of Tech became Abertay University?
Yes, more investment in the labs, library was built, there was a joke that there were “more computers that books”
6.20 What do you think the experience at Abertay would be like for students now?
Don’t have to carry so many books now, everything is online
6.40 Are you still in touch with anyone you met at Uni?
Colin McLean who is a former lecturer of his, once a year say hi to some people, Camilla at NCR
7.20 Is there anything in everyday life that I would use that you have worked on?
Mobile phones, 10 years in Nokia, worked on the first GPS Bluetooth chips in mobile phones; very first contactless payment designs but was shelved as was ahead of its time
8.20 Would you prefer to go to University as it was then or with the improved technology there is now?
Prefer it with improved technology, in those days you couldn’t get online if your Mum was on the phone; don’t need to go into Uni now,
9.07 Do you have any funny or embarrassing stories?
Sixth Sense film had just come out, was in a lift with some girls who were talking about it and they gave away the whole plot including the twist at the end. He still watched it that night!
10.10 Are you still friends with anyone from university?
Not really friends with anyone from Uni, moved away and there were a lot of mature students
10.43 What did you do after you left University?
Now works with the robotics team with Dyson, working on the next generation of robotic vacuums, works on the wireless communication to connect it to internet;
Before that CMR Surgical who made robots to aid keyhole surgery; UPTOS – machine that scans your eye
12.35 When a graduate it’s difficult, but afterwards it’s about learning how to learn – filtering, knowing how to find the information;
Never be scared to say I don’t know, the team will help;
Reasons for going into engineering - all about problem solving, need interpersonal skills too
15.20 What was your favourite thing about University?
Dossing around; when they got high speed internet, some would bring in their home computers and download things
After Masters had a researcher post, which can be very lonely, it was nice to share problems with others,
Gave him access to a lab even after he left to work at NCR
16.20 Did you ever get in trouble at University for anything you and your friends were doing?
Didn’t get in trouble at Uni, because it’s different
16.48 Were you involved in any sports clubs at Uni?
No sports at Uni, but now run a cricket club, never into sports until had kids

A photograph showing construction workers constructing a wall on the Small's Wynd Institute building site.

View looking NNW up Small's Wynd with the front of the Technical Institute building to the right of the image.

View of the front of the Institute building looking SE.

View of the front of the Institute building looking SE, with 4 young children in the foreground, three of whom with no shoes on, and the fourth being pulled in a barrow.