Can you tell me a little about yourself. What did you aspire to be when you were growing up?
I am the youngest of seven siblings, a father of two, and a motorbike enthusiast. Since being a very small child, I’ve always wanted to work in the family business. I’ve always enjoyed making things. I can remember when I was 12 years old, I made two three-wheel trikes and sold them. I’ve built several bikes since then!
How did you embark on your career path and go about achieving your goals – tell me a little about how you came to be in your current position?
Like many people of my age, I started work at 16. In fact, I finished school on the Friday and started work on the following Monday. I was an apprentice fabricator for the family business, Tickhill Engineering.
I transferred to site installations a year later, working under my older brother, Chris. This gave me invaluable experience of seeing how our customers relied upon our equipment and gave me an insight into our customers’ needs and how we could make our machines more efficient.
I worked on site installations until I was 21, when I was promoted to workshop supervisor. As soon as I started in the role, the works foreman went off sick for six months, leaving me to learn the ropes quickly! It was a real case of sink or swim!
Since then, I’ve worked in several other areas of the business, ending up as Engineering Director heading up our research and development department, which really appealed to me because of my passion for engineering and manufacturing.
What experiences have helped to shape your career and inspire you?
Working in a family business meant I was often thrown into something new to fill a gap and had to learn very quickly on the job.
My dad was very good at looking at a problem and coming up with a solution, and I’ve inherited that from him. I love solving engineering problems. I find it incredibly satisfying when I can develop a solution to a problem that brings a real benefit to the person or company who had the original problem.
I love it when the sales team bring me a problem from a customer that needs solving. For instance, I remember when everyone used hydraulic box tipplers. It never sat right with us that hydraulic oil was in such close proximity to food products. I was determined to develop a solution and spent many days and nights thinking about how we could develop a way to empty the box without hydraulics.
I came up with the Rota-Tip electric box tippler. It was the first of its kind and went into production in 1998. It was and still is one of the proudest moments in my career.
Over the years, I have learned to appreciate the value of working as a team and getting the best results by listening to the opinions of others. It’s often the case where the quietest person in the room has the best idea!
What are your main goals currently?
I currently lead our Research and Development department. We currently have a very long list of things to look at. It’s always been that way at Haith. The company has always focused on doing things better, such as looking at how we can improve our machines and our processes. There’s no better feeling than when a customer says, ‘It’s a shame you don’t have a machine that can do this,’ and then we find a way to develop just what they need.
Tell me a little about your business successes and failures and what you have learned from them.
For me winning not one but two Queens Award’s for innovation is a measure of our success and to be still growing after all these years, solving problems and employing local people.
In terms of failures, I take the positives from them. When developing the first Rota-Tip electric box tippler, there were lots of designs that didn’t work. It didn’t happen overnight. That taught me to persevere with things if you think the problem you’re trying to solve is important.
How has your own career outlook changed over the years?
I think over the years, I’ve become more aware of what other people need so that they can develop.
I have always wanted to be an engineer, and that was my goal when I joined the business. I was very focused on me. I was keen to learn and motivated to succeed.
As I’ve moved up and taken on more senior roles, especially as a director, I’ve become more aware of how I could help other people and support the next generation of engineers. I’m now really passionate about ensuring that the next generation of engineers have the knowledge, skills and support they need to progress. I guess that’s part of growing older. You become wiser and want to help others more.
What challenges is the industry facing at the moment and what more could be done to meet and overcome these?
Farming and food production are struggling to attract people who want to work in the sectors. It’s also increasingly expensive to employ people. Businesses have always tried to do things more efficiently, and automation has allowed them to do that. I think we will see this trend continue.
Then there’s the weather. Recent years have been some of the wettest on record. Not only has this had an impact on growing conditions, crop quality and yields, but it has also meant that even more soil is coming into packhouses and processing plants. This is a real issue and something that we’re increasingly asked to resolve.
What tips do you have for the future generation?
This is quite easy to answer, as I just have to remember what my dad told me. Make sure you learn as much as possible from the task you are given and the people you get the opportunity to work with. And, if you keep putting the effort in, the rewards will follow.
For more information about Haith machinery, click here, to read this article on Potato Review, click here.