- Industry 4.0 Awareness Training - Aligning departmental and individual goals with organisation strategy and vision - Operations Assessments to establish potential for process and profit improvement - Selecting, establishing and monitoring meaningful KPIs ("Key Performance Indicators") - Streamlining office processes and defining roles and responsibilities - Functional specification for upgrading or selecting Management Information… Show more - Industry 4.0 Awareness Training - Aligning departmental and individual goals with organisation strategy and vision - Operations Assessments to establish potential for process and profit improvement - Selecting, establishing and monitoring meaningful KPIs ("Key Performance Indicators") - Streamlining office processes and defining roles and responsibilities - Functional specification for upgrading or selecting Management Information Systems - Implementing Visual Management to simplify and ensure routine control - Workplace organisation for safety, productivity and customer confidence - Specialist equipment productivity improvement using SMED and other techniques. - Material and energy waste reductionI continued to support British Printing Industry Federation members as an Affiliate Consultant for Lean and Process Improvement Show less

I use my 10 years dedicated print industry experience at Vision in Print to support printing companies on behalf of the BPiF to improve printing productivity, quality and streamline administrative workflows by training cross-functional teams to implement Lean manufacturing techniques.

PRINTING INDUSTRYVision in Print was one of the most successful Industry Forums, initiated by the UK government to increase productivity and profitability in the UK printing industry. ViP enjoyed the support of the British Printing Industries Federation and an active board of senior executives from many leading printing companies. Some famous brands sponsored ViP, including Heidelberg, Sun Chemical, Premier Paper, Kodak Fuji and others.From ViP's operational start-up I worked with,… Show more PRINTING INDUSTRYVision in Print was one of the most successful Industry Forums, initiated by the UK government to increase productivity and profitability in the UK printing industry. ViP enjoyed the support of the British Printing Industries Federation and an active board of senior executives from many leading printing companies. Some famous brands sponsored ViP, including Heidelberg, Sun Chemical, Premier Paper, Kodak Fuji and others.From ViP's operational start-up I worked with, and led, a team of talented engineers to implement Lean in over 350 companies. Together we developed many Lean techniques for application in printing companies. We also ran annual seminars, published magazine articles and organised training events. Show less

ADVANCED MATERIALSFibreforce manufactured glass and carbon fibre re-enforced materials for use in aerospace, wind turbine, construction and industrial structures. I held P&L responsibility for manufacturing sites in Runcorn and Clacton and a pultrusion machine design company in Colchester. Between 2001 and 2003, I increased sales by 30%, including new business for carbon fibre re-enforcement for wind turbines and secured qualification with Kvaerner Conoco to supply carbon fibre rods for… Show more ADVANCED MATERIALSFibreforce manufactured glass and carbon fibre re-enforced materials for use in aerospace, wind turbine, construction and industrial structures. I held P&L responsibility for manufacturing sites in Runcorn and Clacton and a pultrusion machine design company in Colchester. Between 2001 and 2003, I increased sales by 30%, including new business for carbon fibre re-enforcement for wind turbines and secured qualification with Kvaerner Conoco to supply carbon fibre rods for tension-leg oil platforms. Show less

PACKAGING MATERIALSThe client, Henry Leigh Slater Ltd, was part of the API Group and manufacturing metalised paper using heavy equipment and employing about 150 people. I was brought in at short notice to manage production and maintain customer service during major engineering work to install new equipment. During this period of rapid change I negotiated with union representatives and re-organised and selected supervisors to increase responsibility & effectiveness.

PRECISION ENGINEERED HYDRAULIC VALVESHUSCO International Ltd is an American owned company that manufactures hydraulic valves for JCB, Caterpillar, Ford John Deere and other earth moving equipment manufacturers. Hydraulic valves require high-precision machining of cast iron and complex assembly and testing for variable demand. While Director of Operations at Runcorn I reduced CNC machining costs 17% by increasing productivity (OEE), managed international material supply chains to reduce… Show more PRECISION ENGINEERED HYDRAULIC VALVESHUSCO International Ltd is an American owned company that manufactures hydraulic valves for JCB, Caterpillar, Ford John Deere and other earth moving equipment manufacturers. Hydraulic valves require high-precision machining of cast iron and complex assembly and testing for variable demand. While Director of Operations at Runcorn I reduced CNC machining costs 17% by increasing productivity (OEE), managed international material supply chains to reduce costs year-on-year, implemented Baan ERP MIS into operations and project managed relocation of a manufacturing unit from Hamburg to Runcorn. During this period I participated in best-practice study tours to World-class manufacturing companies in Japan and the USA. Show less

INDUSTRIAL SWITCHGEARPrestolite Switchgear designed and manufactured specialised DC switchgear and contacts for forklift trucks and telecoms, with over 50% exports. I was responsible for P&L, sales, product development and operations. By increasing productivity 30%, labour costs by 12% and then developing sales into telecoms and high-margin international spares aftermarket I was able to turn-around the business from loss to an EBIT of 18% of sales.

ELECTRIC MOTORSPrestolite HD manufactured heavy-duty starter motors and alternators for trucks and buses. I was recruited to assist the UK business turnaround while the American parent business was undergoing recovery from Chapter 11. By applying Lean principles I increased productivity and reduced assembly lead times from 2 weeks to 2 days and halved the floor area while maintaining full capacity. I also visited and developed new suppliers in Taiwan.

TIER 1 AUTOMOTIVE COMPONENTSVolex manufactured wiring harnesses for car companies including Ford, Jaguar, Nissan, and Rover. The Leigh factory employed over 1,100 people.Car plants required JIT (just-in-time) delivery with punishing costs for any failure. Despite demanding variable schedules and challenges from industrial disputes, equipment failures and supply difficulties no car assembly line stops were caused by Volex. By re-organising scheduling I reduced lead times by 1 week and… Show more TIER 1 AUTOMOTIVE COMPONENTSVolex manufactured wiring harnesses for car companies including Ford, Jaguar, Nissan, and Rover. The Leigh factory employed over 1,100 people.Car plants required JIT (just-in-time) delivery with punishing costs for any failure. Despite demanding variable schedules and challenges from industrial disputes, equipment failures and supply difficulties no car assembly line stops were caused by Volex. By re-organising scheduling I reduced lead times by 1 week and was one of 4 managers assigned to a task force to apply JIT (using many Lean techniques) to improve productivity. We also implemented a new MRP system. Show less

FMCG & INDUSTRIAL PLASTIC MOULDINGSNWP was undergoing a business transformation after acquisition by by Bunzl. Products included plastic injection moulded industrial and FMCG products on presses ranging from 5 to 100 tonnes. I re-organised purchasing, production planning and logistics in preparation for an MRP implementation and developed systems to measure OEE (Overall Equipment Effectiveness) and other KPIs. At NWP I observed how financial reporting to maximise apparent profit can… Show more FMCG & INDUSTRIAL PLASTIC MOULDINGSNWP was undergoing a business transformation after acquisition by by Bunzl. Products included plastic injection moulded industrial and FMCG products on presses ranging from 5 to 100 tonnes. I re-organised purchasing, production planning and logistics in preparation for an MRP implementation and developed systems to measure OEE (Overall Equipment Effectiveness) and other KPIs. At NWP I observed how financial reporting to maximise apparent profit can impact cash-flow and the importance of connecting operations capability to marketing strategy. Show less

ELECTRONICSMTL designed and manufactured Intrinsic Safety equipment to protect electronic instrumentation in hazardous oil & gas processing environments. Through innovative technology driven by customer needs the company rapidly grew during this period. I was responsible for project managing a new factory to make electronic devices. As well as operations I was also responsible for purchasing and production engineering. During this period I made a personal study of the Toyota Production… Show more ELECTRONICSMTL designed and manufactured Intrinsic Safety equipment to protect electronic instrumentation in hazardous oil & gas processing environments. Through innovative technology driven by customer needs the company rapidly grew during this period. I was responsible for project managing a new factory to make electronic devices. As well as operations I was also responsible for purchasing and production engineering. During this period I made a personal study of the Toyota Production System that has since become known as Lean manufacturing. To broaden my experience I then moved into sales and managed agents in Europe and Scandinavia. Show less

CONSUMER DURABLESAt the time Raleigh was the biggest bike factory in the world with a proud history and many good people. And was a classic old British manufacturing dinosaur suffering under-investment, equipment that went back to WW1, bad industrial relations and uninspired management (with a few exceptions) - so as a student engineer and then development engineer I learned how not to run a factory!But Raleigh did let me play, so I spent a couple of happy years developing… Show more CONSUMER DURABLESAt the time Raleigh was the biggest bike factory in the world with a proud history and many good people. And was a classic old British manufacturing dinosaur suffering under-investment, equipment that went back to WW1, bad industrial relations and uninspired management (with a few exceptions) - so as a student engineer and then development engineer I learned how not to run a factory!But Raleigh did let me play, so I spent a couple of happy years developing equipment to automate induction brazing rigs and then develop the Raleigh "Raincheck" brake block, for which I am named on several patents. Over 3 million "Raincheck"/blocks were fitted to bikes for the next few years. Show less