Drayton Manor brings in new head of facilities

THEME park Drayton Manor has brought in a new facilities manager in the shape of Doug Stuart.

Stuart brings with him a wealth of experience having previously worked for Virgin Trains and London Overground.
 
He has taken over responsibility for the day-to-day running of a number of behind the scenes components that ensure the theme park’s smooth operation. He is responsible for overseeing the estates team, health and safety, park security and stores.
 
His role involves managing the maintenance team, which includes plumbers, joiners, painters and handy people, dealing with day-to-day reactive maintenance and repairs. It also involves assessing risks and putting control measures into place to reduce risk where possible.

Another new arrival at the theme park, which is located near Tamworth, is head of park operations Steve Lomas.
 
Lomas’s role includes responsibility for all rides and attractions, from the white knuckle thrillers Shockwave and Apocalypse, to Thomas Land, the 15-acre zoo and the 4D cinema.

It also includes event co-ordination, ride and park presentation and guest experience.
 
He said: “I’m going to be looking into developing staff training and development programmes to identify where we can improve upon the already fantastic offering to guests here at Drayton Manor.

IET appoints design and production sector chairman

THE Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) has announced the appointment of Jeremy Hadall as the new design and production sector chairman.

A member of the IET since 1992, Jeremy Hadall is currently chief technologist (automation, tooling, fixturing & electronics) at the Manufacturing Technology Centre in Coventry, chair of the High Value Manufacturing Catapult Automation Capability Forum and a member of the British Automation and Robotics Association Council.

He said: “I am fortunate to take up this position with a strong and enthusiastic team of volunteers, collected together under our previous chairman Morgan David to whom I am indebted.

“Across the nation, the production sector is undergoing significant change with an increased focus on what we, as a nation, can manufacture. Whilst the UK may have lost many of its traditional manufacturing industries, we still have some unique and high value manufacturing sectors, and with our continued investment in innovation and skills we are well placed to develop the high value manufacturing technologies of the future.

“It is my view, that for too long, design and production have not been seen as one and I hope that the design and production sector can address this imbalance.”

New technical manager at National Windscreens

TAMWORTH’S National Windscreens, the UK’s largest independently owned windscreen repair and replacement specialist, has strengthened its senior management team with the appointment of Tim Camm as new technical manager.

Camm has 33 years’ experience within the autoglazing sector, including 20 years involvement in technical training and support.

In recent years, Camm has worked extensively to identify equipment that can be used for the calibration of electronic systems now implemented into vehicle design and build.

National Windscreens managing director Pete Marsden said: “We are delighted to welcome Tim to the National Windscreens’ management team. His knowledge and ideas will be invaluable as we implement a number of initiatives designed to ensure we continue to deliver the level of service our customers expect.”

Recruitment firm appoints data director

REDDITCH recruitment and training firm eResponse Group has appointed compliance specialist John Hope as its new director of data and compliance.

With almost 20 years’ experience of working in further education and training, Hope’s role will be to make sure that the group’s data is kept safe and secure and ensuring it complies with strict rules for accessing government funding streams.

Reporting to eResponse’s commercial director Sam Morgan, Hope will also liaise closely with employers and other partners taking on workers hired through eResponse’s branches and training academy.

Morgan said: “It’s great to welcome John to eResponse. He has extensive experience with the handling of data and will lead our drive to ensure it is kept secure and used appropriately.

“We work closely with a variety of agencies on a daily basis so we also have to ensure our information is presented correctly to the various arms of the state whose funding goes towards the training and qualifications of so many workers.”