On the move: the latest East Midlands hires

Simon Griffiths

The new general manager of Lubrizol’s UK headquarters says he is looking forward to exciting times ahead after reaching “the pinnacle of his career”.

Simon Griffiths has been appointed to the most senior position at the company’s Hazelwood headquarters, near Belper, which employs 380 people and conducts research and development into the next generation of engine additives.

His appointment is the latest step in his 25-year career with Lubrizol which started as a project manager, having previously worked with companies in the aerospace, rail and automotive sectors.

He developed his career within Lubrizol, eventually taking on the position of global account manager, a role he will continue to carry out alongside his general manager duties.

Griffiths said: “Becoming general manager is the pinnacle for anyone working at Lubrizol. When I walked in here 25 years ago I thought this was the best company I’d ever worked for and this is to me the best job on the site.”

“I feel very lucky that my time as general manager will coincide with the most significant development at this site for many years and I believe that the investment is a wonderful endorsement of the world-leading research that is taking place here at Lubrizol Hazelwood.”

Bracknell Roofing has appointed Danny Thorne to develop a specialist flat roofing division of the business in the Midlands.

Thorne has joined the UK’s second largest roof, slate and tiling contractor – which has eight offices around the UK – and will be based at the firm’s Burton-upon-Trent head office.

Danny Thorne

The company is best known for its expertise in pitched roofing projects, particularly in the domestic market for new-build houses and renovations – but Thorne will work solely on raising awareness of its flat roofing capabilities on new build and refurbishment projects, in both the commercial and private housing sectors.

In one of his previous roles, he started from scratch by building up a flat roofing division of a company, which won £1.5m worth of new contracts within the first 12 months – and he feels that he can surpass that with his move to Bracknell Roofing because of the professional infrastructure and the support and resources available to him.

“The management team at Bracknell Roofing have very ambitious plans moving forward, which makes it a very exciting time to join the company,” said Thorne. “I’m looking forward to showing the flat roofing expertise that Bracknell Roofing has and surprising a few people who think we’re just specialists in pitched roofing. With more than 15 years of experience, I truly believe that Bracknell Roofing has the foundations to build a very successful and industry leading flat roofing division.”

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