QR_ 'Insightinar' #1: rapid application development and extreme manufacturing challenges

The home of QR_'s Industry Reflections column, the PLM Essentials series, and topically pertinent thoughts from across the QR_ business and wider industry.

QR_ 'Insightinar' #1: rapid application development and extreme manufacturing challenges

How the engineering and production methodologies conceived, developed and refined in almost real-time during the VCUK ventilator scale-up challenge can be applied to challenger organisations seeking to reach prototype gateways more quickly and more efficiently, production-bound IP holders struggling to realise their market-share potential, and larger organisations looking beyond the usual to ensure competitive advantage in a post-Covid world.

Published 27 Jul 2020

4 min read. Share via:

The methodologies behind a 100 day, 200x production ramp and how they can transform your programme

Friday 31st July, 2pm BST

View here on YouTube and select 2160p for the best visual fidelity and audio quality.

When the true scale of the Covid-19 pandemic became apparent in March, the UK government faced a significant ‘ventilator gap’ between the 5,900 ICU units in service and the projected requirement for 20,000. With no local manufacturing base and overwhelming global demand eliminating the possibility of international purchases, the Ventilator Challenge UK consortium was formed and tasked with bridging the gap. 

Re-engineering and re-certifying an existing Penlon design produced the ESO2, subsequently satisfying bulk of this requirement. But to conduct this re-engineering, re-certification and ramp production over 200-fold within 100 days was the manufacturing challenge of a lifetime, and normal measures would not suffice. 

This webinar focuses less on the story and more on how the working methodologies conceived, developed and refined in almost real-time during the project can be applied to challenger organisations seeking to reach prototype gateways more quickly and more efficiently, production-bound IP holders struggling to realise their market-share potential, and larger organisations looking beyond the usual to ensure competitive advantage in a post-Covid world.  

Presented by

Ian Quest Director, Quick Release_

Ian is a director at Quick Release and mixed strategic, consortium-wide advisory with a keen eye and clear voice for operational implementation and data-driven decision making during the VCUK effort. This unique breadth of perspective informed the basis of QR_’s post VCUK insights that have since been further developed into a coherent implementation methodology.

Based in London, in more normal times Ian operates internationally as he leads QR_’s growing consultancy arm. His focus is on unlocking competitive advantage by bringing products to market faster and more efficiently. An early career in aerospace engineering led to senior leadership roles with several prominent manufacturing consultancies, culminated in the directorship of Newton Europe’s Air, Land & Sea business. Ian joined QR_ full time in 2017, having previously provided non-executive advisory services to its founders.

and

Nick Solly COO & Head of Special Projects, Quick Release_

Nick is Quick Release’s COO and also heads up their in-house software development team "Special Projects". The rapid application development lead for VCUK, Nick built and deployed a bespoke web application (MRP, BoM, Issue Management, Production Planning, Scrappage, Shortages, Inspection Reports) supporting 350 users and key operations across the consortium.

Prior to VCUK, Nick joined QR_ in 2010 after achieving a First in Physics from Oxford. Initially working in Spain with a Tier 1 before returning to the UK for global releasing roles on major CV and supercar programmes, Nick quickly became a regional manager and lead the establishment of QR_’s Consultancy division. Nick is passionate about improving the interface between people and technology and has been the driving force behind QR_’s BTRS offering.

Chaired by

Rob Ferrone Founding Director, Quick Release_

Rob has worked in automotive product development and manufacturing since 2000, supporting Tier 1s and OEMs across Europe. Realising that effective Product Data Management was an industry wide problem, he founded Quick Release in 2003. Rather than treating broken digital plumbing purely as a systems topic, Rob approached it in a people centric way to remove the burden on talent, get businesses working more productively and pave the way for digital transformation and industry 4.0. Rob has been instrumental in creating the PDM Profession. He moved to Koln in 2006, is married with two children, received German citizenship in 2019 and today focuses on client engagement and innovation.

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