Speakers

David Forrest

A Chartered Engineer, member of the IET and a leader in the creation and delivery of Digital Transformation and Industry 4.0 strategies within the manufacturing sector. Defining and leading the delivery of digital transformation. Building highly skilled teams to deliver innovative digital solutions for manufacturing. Responsible for the creation of digital roadmaps and strategies around IOT, Data Visualisation, Advanced Analytics, AI and Digital Automation. Focused on digital technologies that bring tangible benefits to the business. 

Claire Aitchison

Claire is responsible for leading Druck’s supply chain operations in Leicester, UK and Changzhou, China. Claire is accountable for planning and directing all aspects of Druck’s manufacturing and supply chain strategies, objectives, initiatives and policies, championing the Fulfilment, HSE, Productivity, Lean and Supplier Quality for the plants.

Claire has a degree in engineering from the University of London and is a veteran of the Royal Corps of Engineers in the British Army. She then progressed to a career in Supply Chain Operations within GE and then Baker Hughes (Druck) encompassing Six Sigma, Materials Management, Lean Manufacturing, Manufacturing Leader, Service Centre Manager, Plant Leader and Senior Operations Leadership.

Druck manufactures and delivers a comprehensive range of pressure sensors and related test/calibration instruments for the field, workshop and laboratory used across a diversity of applications from aerospace to subsea and from industrial to medical. We bring peace of mind to the toughest environments delivering customer outcomes through intelligent, connected technologies to sense, monitor and control.

Rhys Parkey

Dave Holmes

Dave has worked within the defence & aerospace sector for nearly 40 years. In this time he has been involved in the development and manufacturing of a number of iconic products, many of which are in service globally today. In his role as Managing Director of FalconWorks™ he leads a team focussed on developing new concepts, solutions and air products which are aimed at protecting those who protect us – and providing them with an unfair advantage. He is a key advocate of doing things differently and accelerating talent and technology through partnerships with SMEs, academia and blue chip organisations.  

Kallum Welch

Since joining Airbus as an Engineering Apprentice 15 years ago I have gained extensive experience in Manufacturing Engineering, having held a variety of technical, leadership and business-oriented roles. Currently leading the ME team for Large Component Manufacture and Panel Assembly, my responsibilities include NC Programming, Technical Support and Project Management, whilst ensuring we are developing skills and competencies to transform our industrial system.

Ioana Hera

Ioana is a Lean, Continuous Improvement and Human Resources leader with experience in manufacturing (automotive and aerospace) with both a local and international focus, single and multi-site. Iona is a rounded business leader, with hands-on experience in operations, programmes and finance. Her specialties include continuous improvement, lean, six sigma (Six Sigma Greenbelt, experienced Lean Practitioner) in both manufacturing and business processes. Iona also has experience in human resources including employee development, talent management and generalist experience. 

Ben Ellins

I love factories… but I love digital factories even more! I find the process of converting raw materials and semi-finished goods into the products you see on shop shelves fascinating, and I like nothing better than spending time on the shop floor talking to operators, looking at tasks and flows, and understanding the systems that support them. I’ve spent all my career in IT in CPG companies and my family hold Reckitt very close to our hearts. Now, with significant experience in delivering valuable systems and infrastructure at scale, I’m always on the lookout for the next opportunity to add value, improve quality or reduce risk via digital capabilities. Whether you consider this the fourth or the fifth industrial revolution, I’m more focused on the value to our business, the scalability of opportunity, and the people who will realise the benefit. 

Krishna Kiran Mistry

Krishna has over twelve years of industry experience in technical and project management roles with McLaren Automotive (over 7 years), Bentley Motors (5 years) and Volta Trucks since March 2022. Krisha has been Involved in development programs from concept design to delivery into production with a strong mindset for continuous improvement. 

Sara Halliday

Experienced Sustainability Manager with a demonstrated history of working in the construction and manufacturing industry. Skilled in carbon accounting, environmental reporting and accreditations, net zero strategy development, social value accounting and sustainability frameworks. Strong sustainability professional with PIEMA professional membership, environmental management qualifications, NEBOSH certificate and a 2:1 Bsc focused in Applied Computing from The Manchester Metropolitan University.

Joseph Rumer

Joe manages the digital transformation programme within Operations at INOVYN, part of the global INEOS chemicals group and covering 10 major manufacturing sites across Western Europe. INOVYN are continuously improving their Manufacturing processes, to raise safety and environmental standards, improve reliability and efficiency. To enable digitalisation INOVYN focus on the IT/OT data infrastructure, including wireless sensors and cloud, devices and connectivity, then exploit this through advanced analytics for process optimisation, predictive maintenance and digital apps that make daily life on the plant more productive. Prior to joining INEOS, Joe specialised in manufacturing IT, data analytics and digital strategy as a Management Consultant with BearingPoint, delivering projects at Jaguar Land Rover, Volkswagen, Mercedes amongst others and originally trained as a chemist at Imperial College London, with PhD collaborations including BASF and Solvay. 

Alastair Henniker-Heaton

Specialising in the Manufacturing and Operational Technology domains Alastair works closely with global project teams and widely across JM IT to translate business requirements into implementable solution designs. Experienced in defining and implementing both on-premise and cloud-driven architectures to support JM’s manufacturing capabilities including Manufacturing Execution Systems (MES), Laboratory Information Management Systems (LIMS), Planning & Scheduling tools, Predictive Maintenance / Plant Maintenance Management Solutions and Rapid Process Automation along with strategic and tactical integration designs to systems in the wider IT environment such as Product Lifecycle Management and ERP Systems.

Neil Young

Natasha Lyth

Tasha has worked in manufacturing throughout her career and most recently at Gripple Ltd since Graduating in 2018, being passionate about sustainability and continued development has led her to being appointed as Sustainability Manager. Tasha Won the 2022 Young Manufacturer of the Year TMMX award. She plans to use this accolade to continue to drive discussions about sustainability within manufacturing and hopes to encourage more people to consider a career in manufacturing.

Paul Knight

Paul is an operational executive leader and change agent with a deep technical understanding and background. He has extensive experience leading and managing diverse technology teams globally and regionally for over 20 years across several continents and spanning the defence aerospace, aviation, manufacturing, publishing and education sectors.

Stuart Mulligan

Alison Beard-Gunter

Experienced senior leader, consultant and practitioner in Lean Business Transformation. Top 100 alumni for ‘most influential leader for culture change U.K. Manufacturing’ and Sustainability – Experienced Operations & Continuous Improvement Manager with a 20 year proven track record of applying lean and digital innovation to transform business processes, manufacturing, packaging and supply chains, as well as a published academic on the challenges of people and technology integration.

Lindsay Colton

Neil Anderson

Neil has been with Caterpillar for over 24 years and as Managing Director at their Scinningrove plant  since 2011 where he has been responsible for delivering superior results through excellence planning, lean manufacturing and employee engagement.  

Stuart Davies

Full accountability for Fresh Produce Packhouse and Regional Distribution Centre. Oldest site in Morrisons Manufacturing – est. 1976. 24/7 operation with 595 colleagues. Packing ~1.9m packs per week of; Grapes, Blueberries, Stoned Fruit, Exotic Fruit and tomatoes. Distributing ~250k cases per week directly to 80 stores and sending finished goods stock to a further 7 RDCs.

Alice Quinn

Mark Capell

Mark is the General Manager at Lisi Aerospace (BAIUK Ltd) Rugby. Holding a strong background in manufacturing management, Mark joined Lisi in 2009 as a Production Manager and Six Sigma Black belt, where he specialised in developing new teams and restoring success to challenged departments. As well as having manufacturing and continuous improvement in his blood, Mark’s passion resides with people development and creating a truly world class culture within the manufacturing environment. Mark took over as General Manager in January 2020 following the retirement of 60% of the previous Management team, and just before the onset of the Covid pandemic. This presented the perfect opportunity to embark on a cultural and technological change including the introduction of their first Smart Factory line and achieving recognition for the team’s achievements through winning the People and Skills category at the 2022 MX Awards. 

Katy Moss

Managing a successful manufacturing business built on firm foundations which has been trading for 30+ years at one of the hearts of British steel making. Working at making changes through creating new systems and working practices in order to work towards bigger and better things. Flying the flag for British manufacturing.

Frans Coetzee

Claire Turnbull

Claire provides direction across all UK and China operational areas of the business including Project Management, Business Change, New Product Development, Supply Chain, Quality and Compliance, ensuring that the team can deliver on all operational, commercial and strategic targets.

Alan Brooke

Richard Porter

Richard Porter is the Discrete Industry Lead, EMEA for the Manufacturing | Digital Plant business segment of GE Digital. In this role, Richard is responsible for leading the commercial strategy to support digital industrial transformations within discrete manufacturing across Europe and the Middle East.
With nearly 30 years of experience in the manufacturing IT arena, in roles ranging from software development to sales leadership;Richard has developed extensive skills for leading manufacturing software implementation strategies and successfully combining the technical, cultural, and commercial aspects of those projects.

Based in the UK, Richard graduated from Warwick University with an MSc in Information Technology for Manufacture, and from Durham University with a BSc (Hons) in Engineering.

Asif Moghal

As Autodesk’s Director for Market & Industry Development, Asif leads a collaborative initiative focused on the digital transformation of the design and manufacturing industry. He’s worked alongside many inspiring manufacturers that you might never have heard of and believes that digital transformation doesn’t have to be difficult, that people are the most important aspect of any transformation, and that design is equally as important as manufacturing.

Asif feels that industry needs a clear vision of the future and a realistic strategy that’s free from hype, jargon and which also challenges the many boundaries that manufacturers face.

Mike Cotton

Mike Cotton is a veteran of the technology industry with senior leadership roles in sales, marketing, and channel. He has experience setting up and building a technology company from scratch developing all aspects of sales and marketing to launch and rapidly expand the business globally. Mike has always seen partnering as critical to drive rapid growth with any of the organisations he has worked with, whether this is strategic partners, dealers, resellers, distributors, MSP, technology, and referrals they all have a place in the sales ecosystem. Mike currently leads the sales efforts for Impartner in Europe, managing business development, partnerships, and direct sales.

Julia Rabkin

Julia is a product development & marketing leader for early to growth-stage B2B companies. With 12+ years of experience in customer engagement & creating innovative strategies, Julia excels in growth & GTM initiatives.

Will Eisenberg

Since joining Page Group in 2012 Will has led teams across our manufacturing specialism. He has an in-depth comprehension of the manufacturing market with a strong track record of recruiting operational and supply chain vacancies. He now leads the Senior Appointments team across the North who specialise in management and directorship assignments with a client base ranging from SME to Blue Chip.

Utilising his wealth of experience in the sector alongside Page Groups industry leading resources, Will proactively supports with clients across D&I, sustainability, attraction & retention and salary benchmarking.

Gilmar Wendt

Gilmar Wendt is a business design strategist known for his interdisciplinary approach that brings together various professionals to transform businesses. His three guiding principles are: change is collaborative, success is achieved through incremental steps, and sustainability is ensured when everyone benefits. He is the founder and CEO of GW+Co, the multi-awarded creative change consultancy for engineers and makers. GW+Co’s transformative process focuses on creating a sense of belonging, alignment, and growth among teams, leading to positive transformations in businesses like amsOSRAM, Control Techniques, CoinShares, Identec Solutions, Lenzing Group, Peel Hunt, Zumtobel Group These transformations help companies find their unique voice, foster collaborative cultures, and become effective and authentic in their impact. GW+Co is international with offices based in London and Germany.

Martin Male

Martin Male is a business consultant at Verizon focused on P5G and Edge Computing applications. His background is in operational and business transformation within large national and international organisations across both the public and private sector. He currently assists manufacturers with exploring the technologies of the fourth industrial revolution to maximise operational productivity, efficiency, and safety.

Tim Long

Tim Long is the Global Head of Manufacturing at Snowflake. He previously held positions as the Head of Data and Analytics at Adidas North America and the Head of Enterprise Analytics and Data at Micron Technology. With over 20 years of data leadership experience, Tim has led data and analytics teams to develop and deploy analytics and AI systems across HR, supply chain, manufacturing, finance, and sales functions. Tim holds a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Wyoming and a master’s degree in Business Analytics from NYU Stern.