April 1998 – June 2005
IT Manager
John Lewis of Hungerford is a small kitchen manufacturer, and when I joined the administrative team, they had no standard software, or networks. During my time, I installed local networks at 2 sites, and a Wide Area Network (WAN) across all sites in the UK, Belgium and The Netherlands, using a mix of ADSL technology within the UK, and ISDN lines in Belgium & The Netherlands. I also rolled out custom software I wrote, that was used to process kitchen orders, replacing the handwritten, faxed forms with a computerised system that reduced lead time from ordering to manufacture from days to minutes. Eventually, we were able to automate much of the process by linking it up to a Computer Controlled Router to produce various parts of the kitchen order, so that the router files were generated as part of the ordering process, which helped reduce wastage and time to manufacture.
Installation of a server allowed staff to move freely between different sites, always having access to their files. Prior to this, they were often copying the work they needed onto floppy disks and transporting/mailing these. Automating parts of the invoicing system freed up 4 hours every day for one member of staff, allowing them to work on other tasks, while improving accuracy.
Mobile phone costs were spiraling out of control, so I negotiated contracts that reduced the cost of these by over 90%.
A subsidiary of John Lewis of Hungerford, “Just Doors” (www.justdoors.com) was created (this was later spun off as a separate entity) and I was involved in the website design, creating a basic on-line ordering system, and using the existing ordering system automated the production of the doors for quick turn-around.
Web address: www.john-lewis.co.uk