A NEWPORT engineer who helped to restore the world's oldest pyramid will give a talk at the Newport Civic Centre on September 10.

Peter James, 71, is the managing director of Newport-based Cintec International, a structural engineering firm that has left its mark across the globe.

Whether it’s Buckingham Palace, Windsor Castle or the White House, Cintec’s Waterwall airbag anchors have helped protect some of the world's most recognisable structures.

Mr James, dubbed Indiana James in tribute to Hollywood’s archaeological gunslinger, is best known for his company’s innovative work restoring the world’s oldest pyramid, the Pyramid of Djoser in Egypt.

This iconic 200-foot structure was built as a burial place for Pharaoh Djoser and is more than 4,700 year old. It partially collapsed following an earthquake in 1992.

Cintec, which is made up of a team of 24 staff, used their Waterwall technology, made up of self-inflating air-filled bags, to prevent the collapse of the damaged ceiling.

To strengthen the building’s central chamber, the company then used its patented anchoring and reinforcement system.

Since then, Mr James has put his own theory forward on how the pyramids have gradually fallen apart over the years.

Rather than the long-held belief that it was owed to desperate looters chipping away at the iconic structure, Mr James believes that it was fluctuating temperature that caused the pyramid blocks to crack.

He said: “They got it all wrong. It’s not true that they ran out of food or water.

“There’s a practical reason why, say, the Bent Pyramid shifted from 54 degrees to 43 degrees.

“I still feel the pressure that someone says I’m wrong and kicks me. But, it’s my opinion.”

Mr James, who started out as a civil engineer in Llanwern steelworks some 50 years ago, said the chance to speak about his Egyptian adventure and his theories was an honour.

He added: “Civil engineering was boring; I always preferred building sites.

“It’s very interesting from my perspective. I was just interested in the structures. It’s a niche market.

“We went through it [recession]in 2008, but we’ve got a great team working here. It runs like clockwork.”

Tickets for the talk are £2.50. For more information, visit newportevents.co.uk