Redhill’s Operations Director, Kevin Balcombe, has achieved 40 years’ service with our company and we are delighted to help him celebrate the occasion with a special gift, cake and balloons.
It’s an exceptional achievement by anyone’s standards, particularly when you realise that Kevin has seen three generations at the Redhill helm and been present as the company grew and developed over the years.
Joining Redhill in 1983 as a 17-year old apprentice, Kevin initially spent two years on the shop floor, learning about the company – assembling, paint spraying and forklift truck driving. In 1989, he was appointed Works Manager, a position that involved running the shop floor, updating drawings as our product range increased and resourcing the workplace with new machinery and ideas. This saw Kevin introducing new health & safety standards, setting up a British Standard quality system and overseeing machinery, security and fire systems.
For the past year, Kevin has been Operations Director, a position that still involves updating drawings, but also carries responsibility for health & safety, facilities and product development. As a key member of the management team, Kevin has been instrumental in assisting with our move to new purpose-built premises and establishing Redhill as a Centre of Manufacturing Excellence, equipped with the latest state-of-the-art laser cutting and tube bending equipment, welding machines, band saw, electric brake press and more.
The stunning cake created by our production manager Rob’s wife Kim Underhill, owner of Kimundi_Cake_Crumbs based in Solihull. (Kevin actually chose not to use the Band Saw and opted for a knife!)
With 40 years’ service under his belt, it’s no surprise to learn that Kevin is generally one step ahead of everybody else when it comes to manufacturing knowledge. Kevin says he treats the company as if it were his own, and this means leading by example, learning from mistakes, as well as making time to laugh at least once a day.
It’s this combination of expertise and fun that makes Kevin such a popular and essential part of our company and we would like to extend our heartfelt congratulations to him on this amazing achievement. Keep doing what you’re doing, Kevin! We couldn’t do it without you.
