31st March 2011

March 2011′s Summit was centred upon Localising The Supply Chain.

Times are still tight and with this, March 2011′s Summit covered how Purchasing is undertaken on a local level, how we can make it more effective and generally, how we can encourage companies from Kirklees to trade with each other more.

If more of us are working together this results in more capital swimming about our local economy, meaning much stronger district-wide business community and hence, more jobs.

We centralised this Summit around the Kirklees manufacturing sector and attempting to realise how SME’s from Kirklees can work more closely with this sector.

This was a superb opportunity for manufacturers to mix with local SME’s who may be able to offer services to improve efficiency, raise productivity, develop new ideas or tackle a problem that is hampering profitability.

SME’s from Kirklees utilised this Summit to learn what our local manufacturers may require in respect of suppliers and how they best can adapt to work with some of Kirklees’ flagship companies.

The Panel for this Summit was:

Adrian Lythgo – Chief Executive, Kirklees Council

Adrian was appointed Chief Executive of Kirklees Council in July 2010. He is passionate about Kirklees and proud to be Chief Executive in his own community. He is married with two children and lives in Kirklees. Adrian believes that the council should continue to celebrate the diversity of Kirklees in all its different aspects. Part of his initial focus is to meet as many people and staff as he can.

Prior to becoming Chief Executive, he was previously the council’s Director of Finance and Performance having joined the council in 2009. During this time, he has been responsible for the council’s change programmes and being the council’s statutory finance officer and performance lead.

Before joining Kirklees, Adrian was an Associate Partner at KPMG in Leeds where most recently he was responsible for the firm’s public sector assurance, advising business, providing services to local authorities, the NHS, universities and colleges.

He has had a broadly based career in the public sector, including at the Audit Commission where he was involved in the development of inspection and policy development in addition to statutory audit responsibilities for public sector clients.

Gary Jones – Director CKMA

Chairman of a local engineering group based in Halifax, with subsidiaries in the USA and China. He has recently been appointed to the Leeds LEP board and is chairman of the CKMA (Calderdale and Kirklees Manufacturing Alliance) and a governer of the Design Dimension Educational Trust.

Gary has a passion for manufacturing in the UK and encouraging the application of design thinking as a way of achieving competitive advantage, innovation, broadening horizons and achieving economic development.

Ian Parker – Chief Executive, Birkby’s Plastics Limited

Ian Parker has over has over 10 years senior management experience in leading performance change in challenged international manufacturing businesses. For the last three years Ian has been Chief Executive of Liversedge based Birkby’s Plastics, an automotive plastic interior and exterior trim supplier serving Toyota, Honda, Nissan and Jaguar Land Rover. He became CEO of Birkby’s in January 2008 by leading an MBO and since the Lehman’s crash in September 2008 has battled to keep the company moving forward in a very difficult business environment.

After a career in industry in international Sales & Marketing and Operational Business Unit Director level roles, Ian moved full time into turnaround management with projects for TT Electronics plc and Endless LLP. His first project as an independent saw him based in France for 14 months evaluating and eventually closing a car climate control business. He then took on the European Operations of Europower, a hydraulics hose and fittings business, with primary production sites in Poland and the UK.

Ian sees Birkby’s as a full time turnaround challenge. The expansionist MBO plan rapidly changed to one of survival. And now the company is winning new business both in its traditional car component sector and increasingly in industrial product sectors using plastic for the first time as an alternative to traditional materials. As an SME Birkby’s faces all the familiar challenges of finding growth capital funding at this difficult stage of the economic cycle.

Ian has an Honours degree in Biochemistry from the University of St. Andrews, an MBA from Cranfield School of Management and is a member of the Institute for Turnaround (ifT). In addition Ian had the rare privilege of being one of the two local businessmen invited to address the Cabinet when they met in Bradford last June.

Ian Brierley – Chief Executive of JLB Group

Ian joined the family textile business after leaving university. Over the last 20 years the industry has changed dramatically and John L Brierley has expanded into new areas to counter the reduction in its traditional yarn manufacturing.

As well as increasing its range of yarns in the Textile division, it has made larger diversifications in other areas. The pipecleaner manufacturing division, Hewitt & Booth, has increased the range of products it manufactures and buys in and has moved into new markets. In 2003 JLB acquired SCM Turbomotive Ltd, which distributes and re-conditions turbochargers. The company rents out some of the Turnbridge site and is also interested in the medium term property development of this area of Town.

Ian is married with two children and is Chair of the Kirklees Grantmakers Alliance and the Central Youth Club and a trustee of One Community.