Dave, from Chester in Cheshire, started with the Merseyside and North Wales Electricity Board (MANWEB) in 1973 as a student engineer. He self-enrolled on electrical engineering courses and later became sponsored by MANWEB to develop his career further, joining a training scheme to become an Electrical and Electronic Power System Engineer (PSE). He later joined the Central Electricity Generating Board in 1979 as a 3rd Engineer.