Otto Uitting (1897–1962) joined Siemens in 1921 and became a key figure in its hydropower department in Berlin. It was in this capacity he met Thomas McLaughlin, who worked across various departments at Siemens in order to broaden his knowledge of electrical generation, transmission and distribution systems.

Uitting was subsequently posted to Ireland in November 1925 and made a major contribution to the design of the Shannon Scheme as one of Siemens leading engineers.

Uitting’s papers are held in the Siemens Historical Institute in Berlin.