Meaningful work where continuous learning plays a key role

Juha-Pekka Hyvärinen, who works as a senior expert in nuclear technology, has built his career on continuous learning, responsibility, and precision. His story is an example of how the nuclear industry offers the opportunity to grow as an expert through hands-on experience in a field where progress never stops and where the work plays a vital role in ensuring clean energy for the future.

From childhood dreams of being a lumberjack to a career in the energy sector

Growing up in Polvijärvi, Juha-Pekka spent his childhood surrounded by forests and computers – he was the one the family turned to for any IT issues and even built his own desktop from parts. As a child, he dreamed of becoming a lumberjack, but soon realized his technical inclination and saw that a meaningful career could be built in a field where precision and computational problem-solving are at the core. His career story is one of steady determination – a story of technical curiosity, commitment to safety, and pride in contributing to a cleaner future.

The employment rate in the energy sector was almost one hundred percent, so the choice was easy in that sense. I chose nuclear technology as my minor because it sounded interesting, he recalls.

I understood that nuclear power is the only technically viable way to produce baseload power without carbon emissions. Wind and solar are important, but they’re intermittent. In this job, I get to help build the future energy system. That feels meaningful.

Early career years and international experiences

Juha-Pekka’s career began at the Loviisa nuclear power plant, where he worked summer jobs in radiation monitoring starting in 2009. Later, he gained experience at the Forsmark nuclear power plant in Sweden. He completed his bachelor’s thesis at LUT in Lappeenranta and his master’s thesis for ETH Zurich at the Paul Scherrer Institute (PSI) in Switzerland.

Living in the guesthouse and meeting other researchers from around the world was an amazing and eye-opening experience, he says.

Immediately after graduating, in early 2015, Juha-Pekka started working at Platom.

Ten years of growth and expertise

The years at Platom have brought a wide range of projects and an enormous amount of learning. Juha-Pekka has grown into one of the company’s key experts, especially in licensing and safety analysis. A significant milestone in his career was working on the PLP project (PSAR Localisation Project), where he served as Platom’s Lead Engineer.

It was an important learning experience that deepened my understanding of the overall licensing process for nuclear power plants.

Another memorable experience was contributing to Posiva’s final disposal project.

It’s been incredible to be involved, even in a small role, in building the world’s first spent fuel disposal facility – it attracts a lot of admiration internationally.

Learning about responsibility and precision

As demanding as the nuclear energy field is, it teaches patience and precision.

The work is highly responsible and schedules are tight. I’m a perfectionist, so I always want to do my job as well as possible. Over the years, however, I’ve learned that sometimes you have to accept that “good enough” is enough, Juha-Pekka says.

He emphasizes one crucial lesson: always double-check. In his work, Juha-Pekka is guided by safety, honesty, responsibility, and clarity.

You shouldn’t rely on someone else to catch mistakes. Ultimately, the responsibility for quality is always your own. I want people to understand what I say – and to trust my expertise and decisions.

Current Role and Future Direction

Currently, Juha-Pekka works as a Senior Expert in nuclear technology within Platom’s Safety & Licensing team. He serves as Technical Lead in a client project, responsible for technical matters and licensing. What motivates him most is the diversity and meaningfulness of the work.

Platom is a small company, but full of top experts. We have a great team spirit, and employee well-being is genuinely cared for.

I enjoy doing varied expert work and having flexibility – mostly working remotely, yet still being part of the team. In Finland, we can be proud of the high level of nuclear expertise we have.

Looking ahead, Juha-Pekka is particularly interested in SMR technology and modeling.

I’d like to continue as a licensing expert, but also deepen my skills in process modeling and radiation simulation. The nuclear field is constantly evolving, and that’s the best part – learning never ends.

Life Outside the Office

In his free time, Juha-Pekka relaxes by reading, gaming, traveling, and playing disc golf.

I work a lot, but in a way, my job is also an important hobby for me. I really enjoy what I do. My wife says I treat our house like a nuclear power plant – monitoring temperature, humidity, and any potential leaks, he smiles.