Champion for skills in the engineering manufacturing sector, passionately changing perception, raising standards. Advocate for equity, always authentic, enthusing empowering and encouraging others. Trainer, consultant and speaker.

Adrian has spent the last 25 years in various Automotive roles including Supplier Quality Management , Project Management, Quality Management, and has been the Plant Director since April 2017 at ZF Lemforder UK Ltd. Since his childhood he has had a love for anything electrical or mechanical, when he is not at work he loves spending time in the garage working on the next project. Adrian is passionate about Operational Excellence and driving improvements with strong team and leadership ethos. He is also a keen believer in the successful implementation of problem solving techniques including Six Sigma methodologies as a Black Belt himself. Striving for and achieving improvements are critical for survival in the current manufacturing climate.

Anita is the Group HR Manager within the Lander Group. She has worked in Human Resources for over 20 years, the majority of her career being within manufacturing/automotive industries. She is the Chair of Apprenticeships in Manufacturing and the Regional Chair of West Midlands Apprenticeship Ambassador Network, and a member of the following groups; Make UK Labour Market and Skills Policy Committee, Coventry University Manufacturing Engineering Industrial Advisory Board, developing and reviewing with the group, manufacturing engineering courses and degree apprenticeships in manufacturing and robotics. IoT Employer Advisory Group, Automotive Trailblazer and Wolverhampton Police Independent Advisory Group. Anita supports external activities, engaging with schools and career events promoting manufacturing/engineering. Anita is driving the vocational qualification levels within the Lander Group, with employee development and engagement at the forefront of business practice.

Rita Davey has over 25 years’ experience in the Learning and Development sector where she has gained multi-dimensional knowledge and experience addressing people and organisational challenges. This has included developing and delivering strategies to address organisational, regional, sectorial and national skill agendas including the setting up and management of training operations and academic departments. As a qualified and experienced teacher, trainer and assessor she also has a wealth of experience developing and facilitating Learning Interventions many of which have been recognised at national level. Rita’s passion and ability to develop individuals, teams and businesses led her into her current role with Jaguar Land Rover as Supplier Programmes Manager supporting supplier development in relation to skills & organisational development. Rita has supported the judging of the National Enginuity Skills awards since 2014 and joined The Manufacturer MX judging team 5 years ago.

With over 30 years in the automotive industry, Nick has had roles in a wide range of functions with a heavy focus on manufacturing. These include process engineering, operations, business process and systems design, finance and project management, in both greenfield as well as some of the oldest plants. The application of lean process methodologies and the opportunities presented by the effective use of data are key focus topics.

Bob Gibbon is a chartered engineer and professionally qualified coach, facilitator and teacher. During a 30-year career in manufacturing Bob led business transformation in world-leader businesses, spent over 15 years at board level and chaired around 50 SMEs across the world serving a breadth of industries. 

Bob who is a past Royal Academy of Engineering Visiting Professor and Honorary Fellow of Brunel University has been a TMMX judge for 13 years and has contributed to a number of the question sets throughout that time.

Bob’s current focus is working with high-performance teams and organisations.

Julie has 30 years experience across manufacturing within the automotive industry, interspersed with working in the supply base, the NHS and a variety of FMCG. Predominantly focussing on labour planning, lean methods and implementation and a constant aim to keep things simple

Colin Guttridge is a Chartered Engineer with nearly 20 years’ experience working in manufacturing businesses and has held various roles in both design and manufacturing engineering serving several different industry sectors such as aerospace, precision measurement equipment, off-highway equipment and subsea. Digital thread, and the application of data analytics to process capability and supply chains, alongside low-cost automation are key areas of interest.

Andy is the Global Marketing & EMEA Sales Manager at Philadelphia Scientific. With a huge depth of experience across different sectors such as FMCG, B2C and B2B sectors, the focus of Andy’s career is now on the manufacturing of data products that support the materials handling industry. Working closely with all sectors of the group such as R&D, engineering, operations, finance and special projects, Andy brings a different perspective to each of the teams, helping to drive forward positive change and introducing factors into the processes that have led to the development of several award-winning products. As an associate with the Chartered Institute of Marketing and a past speaker at BMC events, Andy’s current focus is working with Philadelphia Scientific’s internal high-performance teams and relevant external industry organisations.

Richard Jeffers trained as a Mechanical Engineer at the Victoria University of Manchester and has been a Fellow of the IMechE since 2014. He has worked in a range of operational and engineering roles in Cookson Group plc, Lionheart plc and Heineken UK Ltd, where Richard led the Engineering function, ran a network review and was responsible for the execution of a £150m capital programme that saw the regeneration and expansion of 2 of the 3 main UK production sites. After a period in maintenance and operational consultancy, Richard joining RS Group plc in 2017 developing and supporting a range of solutions for industrial customers and leading the acquisition of Monition Ltd. Since May 2020, Richard has been focused fully on developing digital solutions for RS’s maintenance customers and is now Founder and Managing Director of the RS Industria business unit supporting industrial customers on their digitisation of engineering agenda.

An experienced Supply Chain Director with proven success across three industries. Passionate about all things supply chain from external case packaging through to the product itself. Excels at optimising supply chains for cost, agility and customer excellence through data driven execution.

Kirstie Kennedy is the HR Manager at LISI AEROSPACE (BAIUK Ltd) Rugby bringing a wealth of HR knowledge and experience to LISI Aerospace when she joined the Company in 2020. Kirstie is a passionate people professional who has very proactive approach with a strong work ethic to succeed as the Company embarks on a cultural and technological changes. Kirstie enjoys nothing more than seeing the teams at LISI Aerospace achieve their potential through learning and development initiatives, apprenticeship programs and beyond.

Currently a product leader within a UK FTSE100. I previously spent twenty-plus years with a US-based manufacturer of hand and power tools, often working across different commercial disciplines, including sales, product development and marketing. I also spent five-plus years within a manufacturing facility and have a lean manufacturing/kaizen background.

David is CEO of IfM Engage. IfM Engage partners with organisations across industry, government and academia to support them in solving complex challenges, using approaches and knowledge developed at the Institute for Manufacturing (IfM), a division of the University of Cambridge’s Department of Engineering. IfM Engage offerings are grounded in exceptional research, combined with a breadth of industrial expertise. Our mission is knowledge transfer, helping the people and organisations we work with to develop their capabilities and build the future of manufacturing.

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.

Special projects manager at Gripple with responsibility for embedding innovation Developed and run product incubator Developing regional competencies for South Yorkshire Innovation District.

Asif studied industrial design at the University of Wales, before starting his professional journey to help solo innovators and manufacturing businesses develop and bring to market a variety of new products. These ranged from consumer goods to medical devices, to industrial equipment and the occasional perpetual motion machine. As Autodesk’s Director for Market & Industry Development, he leads a collaborative initiative focused on the digital transformation of the design and manufacturing industry and has worked alongside many inspiring SMEs that you might never have heard of. He 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. But there’s a lot of hype, jargon and boundaries that need to be challenged along the way, and what industry needs is a clear vision of the future and a clear strategy to enable it. When Asif isn’t helping UK manufacturing SMEs tackle digital challenges head on, he can be found trekking at high altitudes or tinkering with his campervan.

A skilled, results-driven senior management professional with 13-plus years’ experience in management, Kelly has a strong track record in leading operations, driving productivity and profitability while delivering superior results. Kelly is playing a lead role in the transformation of the Institute of Export & International trade, where she has managed the organisation’s expansion from 15 team members to nearly 200. This includes recruiting one of the UK’s largest talent pools of trade and customs specialists. Together with the senior Leadership team, Kelly is steering the IOE&IT as the leading organisation in the promotion of international trade worldwide through education, training and business support services. Kelly's journey is marked by accomplishments that resonate in the realm of international trade. Her expertise, commitment and visionary approach position her as a notable judge in this dynamic field.

Sameer Savani joined GKN Aerospace in April 2022 as Vice President for the company’s Global Technology Centre in Filton, Bristol, UK. The GTC is joint £32m investment between GKN Aerospace and UK Government (through the Aerospace Technology Institute), created to accelerate Aerospace technology developments toward Aviation’s net zero 2050 mission. The GTC bring together GKNA’s customers and partners in a collaborative research and technology environment, bringing forward technologies such as composite materials and manufacturing, automated assembly, additive manufacturing and hydrogen propulsion. Before GKN Aerospace, Sameer’s last position in Aerospace was Head of Innovation and Engineering at the UK’s trade association, ADS. His roles there ranged from shaping government policy and industrial strategy, to leading the development of various strategies across the UK aerospace and defence industries, including in Sustainability, Digitalisation, Advanced Air Mobility, and Technology & Innovation. Starting his career as a MOD scientist, Sameer moved to industry in 2010. While at the Aerospace and Defence KTN, he launched the UK’s first National Aerospace Technology Strategy – the precursor to today’s Aerospace Technology Institute (ATI). In the nine months between ADS and GKNA, Sameer spent time in Saudi Arabia, supporting the launch of a major international trade show.

A professional strategic marketer and business development specialist in technology markets Chris has proven experience establishing early stage businesses and taking them through initial concept to patent development and establishing sustainable sales. His background in the Engineering sector as a Chartered Engineer has encompassed developing business in markets from Aerospace, Medical and Electronics to Oil and Gas. He worked internationally in several blue chip global companies. He has overseen the establishment of new companies in Italy, Israel and Switzerland and gained a broad knowledge of general management in an international environment. He has specialised knowledge of establishing relationships between blue chip companies and early stage technology businesses to exploit new innovations. Currently CEO of Diamond Hard Surfaces Ltd, a high growth SME in the Engineering Sector who export 60% of their business. In 2022 he won his first QAE in International Trade for DHS.

Kate leads on organisational culture, recruitment and retention for IfM Engage. She is responsible for operational management and is the Director responsible for the Operations, Events, Marketing and Communications activities. She also looks after external collaborations and partnerships with key industry bodies and groups and has an interest in increasing impact in the community.