About
I’m Gareth Western — a Data Platform Architect and IT Consultant based in Norway, specializing in designing and implementing scalable, enterprise-grade cloud data solutions. I bridge the gap between complex software engineering principles and modern data architecture.
I’ve spent most of my working life somewhere around build pipelines, cloud platforms and the small integrations that hold systems together. These days that mostly means data platforms and Databricks; earlier on it meant a lot of Java programming and CI/CD. Somewhere in the middle I wrote the MQTT Notification Plugin for Jenkins, released in 2013 and maintained at a leisurely pace ever since.
🛠️ What I Do & What I’m Into
- Data Engineering & Architecture: Designing robust, declarative data pipelines and implementing modern data lakehouse architectures.
- Cloud Ecosystems: Deep immersion in cloud-native platforms, specializing in building secure, governed, and high-performance data infrastructure.
- Stream & Batch Processing: Optimizing heavy workloads, managing real-time data streaming, and fine-tuning distributed computing environments.
- DevOps & Local Workflows: Streamlining developer environments using containerized setups and infrastructure-as-code principles.
🧰 Tech Stack & Ecosystem
| Category | Technologies & Tools |
|---|---|
| Data & Platforms | Azure Databricks, Apache Spark, Snowflake, Delta Lake, Iceberg |
| Streaming & Messaging | Apache Kafka |
| Languages & Logic | Java, Python, SQL, Scala |
| DevOps & Containers | Podman, Docker, Linux/WSL, CI/CD Pipelines |
🔭 Current Focus & Exploration
- Advanced data governance and cataloging strategies for enterprise analytics.
- Optimizing local containerized environments for data engineering workflows.
- Exploring the intersection of natural language interfaces and business intelligence (AI/BI).
📬 About This Site & Contact
This site is where I write up things I’ve figured out — usually so future me can find them again. Mostly Azure, Jenkins, GitHub Actions, and data platforms.
Feel free to reach out if you want to talk data engineering, architectural design patterns, or distributed systems! You can email me at gareth@garethwestern.com; my other links are in the sidebar.