SCHNEIDER ELECTRIC APPOINTS RHONDA DOYLE AS DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS, SERVICES AND PROJECTS IN IRELAND S


chneider Electric, the leader in the digital transformation of energy management and


automation, has announced the appointment of Rhonda Doyle as Director of operations, services and projects in Ireland. Doyle is appointed by Country President for Ireland Kelly Becker, who will herself become the Zone President for UK & Ireland from January 2021.


Doyle will play a fundamental role in managing the operations of the


Schneider Electric business in Ireland, with a specific focus on maintaining service for the company’s customers in the region. She will partner with the Irish management team to develop Schneider Electric’s overarching strategy in the region. This will include developing ambitious goals, strategies and business plans for each of the individual divisions represented in the overall business – which include Industrial Automation, Secure Power, Power Products, Power Systems, and Digital Energy, and Services. Doyle will be tasked with coordinating growth strategy to ensure the


business targets critical industries including data centre and networks, manufacturing, and renewable energy segments. This includes overseeing the projects team in the delivery of multi-discipline projects for customers. She will also be directly responsible for the development of field services across these core industries. With previous responsibility as a global and strategic business leader,


Rhonda’s diverse knowledge of various business functions and the Irish market ensures she can lead teams and programs of work to develop and evolve Schneider Electric’s business strategy in the country. “Rhonda is the right person to continue the growth and development of


our operations in Ireland,” said Kelly Becker in her current position as Country President for Ireland at Schneider Electric. “With over 20 years’ experience in business leadership, Rhonda has a proven track record of successfully leading teams through complex transformational change. Her excellence in project and program management make her ideally placed to lead our business unit teams in offering even greater consultancy, field and digital services, and integrated implementation for our customers. I’m thrilled to bring someone of Rhonda’s calibre into our organization as we continue to deliver significant growth in Ireland ” “As we see all aspects of our lives become increasingly electrified and


digital, success in all industries will become underpinned by reliable and sustainable energy supply. Rhonda’s diverse knowledge and experience means she is ideally placed to understand and tackle the strategic sustainability challenges our customers face.” Commenting on her appointment Doyle said: “I am absolutely delighted


with the opportunity to lead the operations team of Schneider Electric Ireland. I am passionate about building engaged and high performing teams, collaborating together to execute a strategy at scale with our business partners and customers.” Rhonda Doyle joins Schneider Electric from eBay, where she spent 17 years


and was most recently Director, Global Operations and Program Management for eBay’s Global Customer Experience teams. Whilst at eBay Doyle was the business Sponsor for eBay’s Diversity & Inclusion Charter in Ireland. She officially began her role as Director of Operations, Services and


Projects for Schneider Electric Ireland on January 4th, 2021. www.se.com/ww/en/


JOB OPPORTUNITIES RISE IN MANUFACTURING SECTOR DESPITE TOUGH YEAR T


here have been 40,000 new jobs across the manufacturing sector between August


and October this year, a rise of 41 per cent from the last business quarter, and Wetherby based SME, metals4U, has benefited from the booming business, taking on 11 new staff members themselves during the first lockdown period, an additional five during the second lockdown and six more planned for the first quarter of 2021. The manufacturing sector’s average weekly


working hours are up to 31.3 per worker, which is two hours more than the national average. With the announcement of the National Living Wage increasing by 2.2 per cent to £8.91 from April 2021, many workers in the sector will benefit which adds to more positive news for the industry going into 2021. Business orders for metals4U were up by 41


and 28 per cent higher than February 2020. Sales continue to grow with 2021 orders forecast to be 60 per cent up from 2020. This increase in sales led to the firm also being able to rent additional warehouse space and invest an additional £500k in stock to meet demand.


Predictions for 2021: The best way to grow UK manufacturing through these trying times of Brexit and Covid is to invest within our shores as highly as possible. By utilising the skills and products already held, or manufactured, within the UK we can support the UK economy while making a real difference at a grass roots level to the livelihoods of all the sectors and services that make up, and contribute to, the construction industry supply chain. We need to prioritise UK based materials


per cent in July 2020 from July the previous year, manufacturers and suppliers, utilise the skills and


talents of UK based engineers, designers and manufacturers, and the entire collective of workers that are instrumental in the success of all manufacturing projects. Paul McFadyen, managing director of


metals4U said: “The planned increases to the national living wage will benefit our workers greatly, and with more opportunities we hope to be able to offer more jobs within the business. We are starting to see signs of recovery in the industry that were affected by Covid-19 and, looking ahead to next year, we are hopeful for further signs of recovery in the sector. “With uncertainty around Brexit and trade


deals we are expecting to see a shift to more localised trade, which as a Yorkshire based business, we hope to gain from in 2021.”


For more information on metals4U, visit: www.metals4u.co.uk


SURVEY REVEALS 65 PER CENT OF UK WORKERS HAVE NOT RECEIVED ANY SAFETY TRAINING H


oneywell released the results of a comprehensive study on workers’ perceptions and feelings on the health and safety of their


workplace. Conducted by Wakefield Research, the study surveyed 500 workers that typically work in buildings with 500 or more employees across the United Kingdom and was part of a global study of 2,000 workers in a total of four markets. The findings show that a staggering majority of the UK workforce (71 per


cent) does not feel completely safe working in their employer’s buildings. This number is even higher for remote workers (78 per cent), who are especially sceptical about the safety of work sites. In fact, almost a quarter of remote workers globally (23 per cent) would look for a new job rather than return to a site that did not implement necessary safety measures, (22 per cent in the UK). Furthermore, only 35 per cent of workers in the UK have received safety training from building management, compared to 41 per cent globally. “Workers are keenly attuned to the steps employers are taking to make


their workspaces safer and healthier, especially when it comes to air quality and adherence to safety guidelines, which wasn’t previously a concern for some people,” said Vimal Kapur, president and chief executive officer of


Honeywell Building Technologies. “Air quality, for example, is not something that will be dismissed once we’re on the other side of this pandemic. It will be essential to the occupant experience, and good air quality will help make workers feel more comfortable as they return back to their offices.” The surveyed workers in the UK are equally concerned about Covid-19


transmission through the air (49 per cent) and through contact with a surface (51 per cent). Their level of concern for surface transfer is significantly higher than that of workers globally (44 per cent). In terms of what poses a bigger threat to their safety, 62 per cent point to co-workers not following safety guidelines and 38 per cent note outdated ventilation systems. Over half (62 per cent) of surveyed UK workers believe that building


management is more likely to make short-term changes in response to Covid-19 rather than make long-term investments in building systems needed to keep them safe. Surveyed workers are most worried that building management will not consistently enforce health and safety guidelines (43 per cent), followed by worry that they won’t consistently invest in new technology to make working in-person safer (28 per cent). https://www.honeywell.com/us/en


/ IRISHMANUFACTURING IRISH MANUFACTURING | DECEMBER/JANUARY 2021 5


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