Ian WilliamsonChair of the Manufacturing TPN
Ian's engineering career started in 1990 when he undertook a four-year indentured apprenticeship working for a small engineering and fabrication company producing components for the Military sector, automotive, sector and general bespoke engineering. Ian has subsequently worked for Coventry Radiators producing heat exchangers and commercial vehicle radiators.
Ian worked for Lucas Aerospace, TRW Aeronautical Systems and Goodrich Engine Control Systems, gaining vast engineering experience as the Lead New Product Introduction, a tier one supplier to Rolls Royce and Airbus of electro-mechanical fights and engine control systems for aircraft and military applications. In this role, Project managing manufacturing and operations for new product introduction of the Airbus A380 primary and secondary flight controls.
Currently, a Project Manager and Senior Leader within the Warwick Manufacturing Group; identifying and researching opportunities to reduce facility and manufacturing costs through the adoption of new materials and manufacturing methods. Additionally, establishing how technology can be employed to reduce capital investment for new model introduction through improved flexibility within a manufacturing facility. Ian is also currently working with MSc Students supervising dissertations.
Antariksh Akhave
Vice Chair of the Manufacturing TPN
Christopher ProudfootChristopher graduated from the University of Oxford with a 1st in Engineering Science and later completed a D.Phil. in Control Engineering. His career developed at Unilever through Control Engineering research to leading Unilever’s global Control Engineering Group with responsibility for control systems strategy across all Unilever business units. In 2001, he was appointed business process manager as part of Unilever’s global implementation of Procure to Pay (P2P) technology, building upon the engineering standardisation he had achieved and allowing him to apply his experience within a broader supply chain setting. In 2006, he joined Aviva to lead a global transformation of procurement technology and then, in 2011, he moved into consulting supporting process and technology transformation programmes within Procurement. Throughout his career, he has maintained academic contacts including an honorary lectureship at Liverpool University Management School. He has a keen interest in change management applied to technology and process and is a regular blogger in this area. He has an MBA from Henley Management College and is a Fellow of The Institution of Engineering & Technology (FIET).
Susan JonesSenior Quality Systems Specialist, Tata Steel
Since graduating with a Masters in Engineering from Brunel University Susan has worked internationally in continual improvement and change management. Her career has spanned the aerospace, automotive and steel industries, helping to turn companies around. She focuses on bringing people together to solve problems, and improve the way machines, people and processes work.
Susan supports others in their professional growth to maximise the potential for the individual and the team. She is a mentor and a role model, and founded the Women In Steel (WISEST) network which aims to create a positive platform to inform and influence the role of women in steel, and to inspire future generations to be involved in the industry. She inspires people to engage with Engineering and STEM subjects, and has won awards for her volunteering as a STEM and foreign language ambassadors to schools. She volunteers with the Institution of Engineering and Technology at a local network level, and with the manufacturing technical professional network.
Paul BridgemanProject Team Leader, Trelleborg
Paul began his engineering career with a four-year apprenticeship at Westland Helicopters, covering production and then maintenance operations. Paul’s career has so far consisted of Maintenance, Manufacturing, Production Engineering, Research & Development, Project Engineering and Project Management across the Aerospace, Automotive, Semi-conductor and Advanced Composite Material industries. Currently a Project Team Leader within Trelleborg Sealing Solutions; Paul manages the Capital Expenditure programme, Production Engineering Department and Plant and Infrastructure programme for one of their UK facilities. Paul has a keen interest in Automation, Industry 4.0 and Human-Machine Collaboration.
Jon Lamb
Shefiu Zakariyah
Xin Cao