There was a need within the company to strengthen the US operation with someone of my background and experience, therefore this ultimately turned into an intra-company transfer. This suited my personal circumstances and I am now permanently based in the USA.

§       Based at Encoda in Denver the main responsibilities included:-

·       Management of US based automation projects including resource planning, timescale planning, technical liaison, issues management.

·       Management of Denver based automation hardware stock control and inventory.

·       Inside Sales activity including pricing, proposal drawings and liaison with the various points of expertise in the company and station engineers of new and existing customers to ensure all sales proposals were technically feasible and appropriate to the intended purpose.

·       Liaison with station engineers, chief engineers, VPs of engineering etc. to capture requirements correctly both for upgrades and to identify potential new business.

·       Installation and maintenance of the automation test and demonstration lab. This is a fully featured flexible  multi-channel demonstration system built to broadcast standards.

·       Automation systems planning, procurement, engineering and coordination for exhibitions and customer on-site demonstration systems.

·       A single point of expertise for all CAD based drawing and design requirements.

·       Technical liaison with US based system integrators.

Feb 2000 – Dec 2000                Sony Broadcast & Professional Europe   Basingstoke , Hampshire , United Kingdom .

Project Leader (systems production)

Sony Broadcast and Professional Europe has the largest broadcast systems build facility within the worldwide Sony group. Activities include all types of broadcast systems and outside broadcast vehicles. Its business area covers all of Europe , Eastern Europe , Scandinavia , the CIS and the Middle East .

§      As a Project Leader my responsibilities covered project planning

management, design, supervision, commissioning, customer liaison and proposals at a senior level. I was “headhunted for this position” by Sony in an effort to strengthen the capabilities of the Systems Production Management team. During my time with Sony completed projects included:-

·         Automated transmission playout system for TV Norge based in Oslo , Norway .

·         Large Scale NewsBase system for Nord Deutsche RundFunk based in Munich , Germany .

·         Medium sized Newsbase system for Deutsche Welle based in Berlin , Germany .

·         Completed proposals for 6 camera Outside Broadcast Trucks for Egyptian Media City Project.

Jan 1994 – Jan 2000     Drake Automation Ltd. Basingstoke , Hampshire , United Kingdom

Project Engineer (systems group)

§         Drake Automation (formerly Philip Drake Electronics based in Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire, UK) specialises in Multi Channel broadcast automation and related products. The company was historically a full capability UK based broadcast systems integrator. This capability was retained to complement the automation products and led to many of the largest and most complex automated broadcast systems in the industry being built (alongside traditional facilities ie edit suites, live on-air control rooms etc.) with Drake Automation being prime contractor. In August 1999 Drake Automation was bought out by Columbine JDS headquartered in Denver , CO , USA . (The group name became Encoda Systems from January 2001).

§         My responsibilities included project planning, management, design, supervision, commissioning, customer liaison and proposals.

·         Projects completed between 1994 and 2000 include:-

·         Euroradio Automated Control Room for EBU (European broadcasting Union ), Geneva , Switzerland . An automated, digital audio contribution facility for all the station members of the EBU.

·         Radio Studios and misc. facilities for European Parliament Press Centre, Brussels , Belgium .

·         Single camera contribution facility for AA Roadwatch, Stanmore, Middlesex , UK .

·         Transmission control centre for 2^nd channel, Jerusalem , Israel . A high security transmission control center for the contributors of the Israel 2nd channel.

·         Automated transmission area, compilation facilities and component edit suite for HBO, Prague , Czech Republic  

·         160 channel Network Monitoring and Control Centre including comprehensive TVRO satellite receive dish system for Telepiu, Milan , Italy .

·         New automated transmission facilities including multi-channel control rooms and network control areas for BskyB, Osterley, West London , UK . This was the complete fit for one of the largest transmission facilities in Europe in a new purpose built building.

·         Lines area facilities and satellite receive monitoring and backhaul systems including a major TVRO dish installation as part of entire ground up automated multi-channel television facility for WizjaTV (thematic channels for Poland ) based in Maidstone ,  UK .

·         Over-air command and network protection system for NDS, Hedge End, Southampton UK as part of the SDN UK digital terrestrial TV multiplex. The development, productionising of fail-safe autonomous dual-redundant transmission site controllers  for the 81 transmission sites of the SDN DTV system.

·         Automated transmission facilities for UPC, Amsterdam, Netherlands A large complete new build from scratch facility which includes automated playout and ingest systems, large scale material archiving (StorageTek and Avalon), edit suites (Avid and traditional GVG based), audio suites and multi-format areas.

June 1990 – Dec 1993               British Aerospace, Plc. Warton, Lancs , UK

Defensive Aids Trials Engineer

§         Worked in Military Aircraft Division, mainly involved with Tornado Interdictor Strike aircraft mid life update programme.

§         Responsibilities included rig design, testing and organisation of ground and airborne trials programmes for new defensive aids receive and radar jamming sub-systems. 

§         Also had responsibilities for Radiological Hazard assessments for ground and airborne radar and related systems.

·         Extra-curricular activities during this period included:-

·         Design, installation and commissioning of 2 radio reporter vehicles for British Broadcasting Corporation, North-East England region.

·         Performance of occasional radio outside broadcast operation and recordings for British Broadcasting Corporation, North-West England region.

§           Consultation, proposals and research for 2 radio licence applicants. One in North-West England and one in London . This involved the engineering aspects of these proposals covering everything from microphone to transmitter, with project implementation proposals, timescales, build costs and operating cost projections.

Sept 1982 – June 1990           British Broadcasting Corporation  Radio            London & the English regions.

Radio Engineer in various areas.

§         September 1982 to January 1985 shift maintenance engineer in all central London BBC radio areas at various times. Included the full range of installations from recording studios to main control room systems. Included, within the first year, training to full BBC ETSIs standard.  Note ETSIs (Engineering Training Standing Instructions) are the required BBC internal qualifications required for all BBC engineering staff – involves a total of 3 months full time education and success in course work and final exams).

British Broadcasting Corporation  (continued)

§         February 1985 to June 1985 technical commissioning engineer. Full commissioning and “sorting out” of new studio installations to acceptance standard for service.

Educational Background

Sept 1972 – June 1977          King Edward VII Grammar School , Lytham, Lancashire , United Kingdom .

General Certificate of Secondary Education- Passes in 7 subjects.

Sept 1978 – June 1982                Bolton Institute of Technology , Bolton , Greater Manchester , United Kingdom .

§         Ordinary Diploma in Electronic and Electrical Engineering

§         Higher Diploma in Electronic and Electrical Engineering.