Howard Edward Roberts UK national living in Bangkok, Thailand

+66843367195 howard1310@yahoo.com

WORK EXPERIENCE 2009 – 2015 (July) Quote Manager (all commodities) and Sourcing Manager (electromechanical) – SVI Public Company – Thailand. • Managing a USD50m spend account. I lead a team of Thai and Chinese nationals in all aspects of sourcing, cost reduction

strategies, price negotiations, spend management, supplier interaction, risk assessment and development. Various forms of VMI implementation, and commodity housekeeping.

• Ensure on-time project quotes and pricing criteria achieved for electrical and mechanical commodities. • Review design drawings and ‘scrubbing’ the bill of materials; to enable a more efficient procurement process. • Manage world leading multi-commodity part supply vendors to small local supply companies. Having constant and varied

cost reduction exercises, improvement and development programs, and if needed, relocating and consolidation of part manufacturing and/or supply sources to ultimately lead to the individual part manufacture and/or supply to be the best commercially beneficial to SVI and that finished products expectations are achieved in all areas.

• Develop and build relationships with local and worldwide manufactures having various processes such as plastic injection, metal die casting, CNC machining, pressing, stamping, laser cutting, extrusion, vacuum metalizing. Part detailing using powder coating and soft touch painting, pad and silk screen printing.

• Where required, identify suitable new suppliers and qualify them. Monitor performance levels and respond accordingly. 2003 – 2008 Senior Advisor and Product Manager - Technical Engineering Solutions and Trading (TEST) – Dubai, Holland, Thailand. • Managed the companies machine tool and vacuum products - sourcing, buying, quoting, selling, installing, repairs and

after sales support. Coached sales and maintenance teams in the applicable areas of their duties. Enabling somewhat inexperienced staff to represent TEST in a highly effective and technical manner.

• Authorised dealer of Italian made Pneumofore Vacuum Pumps and equipment and also sold and repaired various other vacuum pump brands.

• Working from both given, and in-house designs, built various vacuum systems for varied applications. • Managed the companies’ service team, for both machine tools and vacuum systems, including ‘hands on’ fault diagnoses

of electrical and mechanical maintenance, system installations and commissioning. • Gave both company and customer maintenance personnel training on electrical and mechanical courses. • Represented Taiwanese manufactured, Finetech CNC Machine Tools and also repaired various other machine tool brands

as part of agreed maintenance contracts won by myself.

2000 - 2003 Production Manager – Camtech Manufacturing – Dubai • Managed the oil pipeline valve production process, assembly and maintenance department. • Was trained as an internal auditor to ensure API 6D procedures were in place, maintained, and up to date. • Developed an in-house cutting tool management system, monitoring tool life, ordering and buffer stock control. • Diagnosed and performed electrical and mechanical maintenance on all production CNC and conventional machinery. • Implemented continuous preventative maintenance procedures. • Coached the company maintenance staff on all aspects of the CNC and conventional machine repairs. • Assisted CNC programmers and operators to produce consistently accurate components, ensuring the machines were used

to their maximum potential. • Designed and supervised the manufacture in-house, on a range of machine tool fixtures. 1990 – 2000 Service Engineer - Cincinnati Machine (formerly Cincinnati Milacron) – Worldwide • Travelled worldwide, fault finding, diagnosing and performing both electrical and mechanical repairs. • Installed and commissioned CNC machines and demonstrated to users the machines functions and capabilities. • Installed exhibition equipment, and represented Cincinnati Machine at various trade shows. • Worked on various horizontal, vertical and high performance machine tools, turning centres, manufacturing cells, robots,

and grinding machines. These machines having various controls such as Cincinnati’s own brands, Fanuc, Heidenhain, CT.

1982 – 90 Apprentice trained Mechanical Fitter - NSK/RHP - Nottinghamshire, UK

QUALIFICATIONS 2007 Solid Works, Cadtek, Buckinghamshire, UK. 2004 Vacuum Systems, American Vacuum Society, Baltimore, USA. 1990 – 00 Various Cincinnati Machine control, electrical and mechanical courses, UK and USA. 1982 – 86 Apprenticeship / Mechanical Engineering, Nottinghamshire, UK. PROFICIENCIES Microsoft Office, SAP, QuoteWin/Polydyne

CAREER ACHIEVEMENTS... Camera lens cost reduction, improved focus mechanism and laser alignment fixture design This involved me travelling to China seeking out three lower cost, but suitable spec lenses. Whilst doing the lens project I realised the focus mechanism also had areas that were in need of improving. In short, I redesigned the whole mechanism, leaving only three of the original parts untouched. I developed a modular lens design that could be totally interchangeable. It could be realigned without the need for dissembling. It also had a pivoting sensor, as this was needed because of the ever increasing megapixel requirements. I had the whole unit independently tested and no result was inferior to the original design, indeed many having better performance. I travelled to our customers HQ in Sweden whereupon I presented the finished unit. The customer was very impressed, to a point that, though the unit as a whole did not go into mass production. Many elements of the design have been taken, and are now being used in new models today. The savings were around USD1.6m per year. Following on from the focus design. I offered a new laser alignment fixture concept to ensure sensor was correctly assembled. This was manufactured and is used today in the manufacturing process of the customers’ camera products. Relay modifications Worked with a Chinese relay manufacturer to reduce substantial costs. SVI were using five different relays in a Danish customers finished unit. All relays having high demand. Manufacturing and raw materials were increasing so I looked into the options available. Instead of offering similar low cost alternatives, I worked with the manufacturer to develop one relay that could be used to replace the five currently used. The relay was to also have lower cost materials, and as the one relay replaced five, could be purchased in high volumes. Results were successful and savings of >USD700K per year were seen. Nitro-glycerine degassing Whilst at TEST I worked on a project for the Royal Thai Air Force where they needed to degas a certain area of their weapons manufacturing. It was a particularly sensitive project, but I was allowed to assist and offer a new vacuum design package that was operated and viewed from a safe remote area. The package designed had explosion proof pumps, valves, receivers, etc. It also had CCTV cameras as back up giving images of the working parts and gauges. Total degassing of the nitro-glycerine material was achieved, and as far as I know is still used in their weapons manufacturing today. Tool management system At Camtech I designed a tool management system that accurately measured and recorded the true ‘tool cutting life’ and plotted data against the tooling manufacturer claims, number of parts to be made, and when required. This ensured the investment made in the tooling was effective, and with minimum excess stock. Checks were in place to ensure manufacturers’ claims were true. Any error, meant liability to the tooling supplier and not Camtech, in-turn saving considerable sums of money on expensive consumable tooling. Reordering was efficient and on time as the required stock, was automatically calculated when planning production. Cincinnati FMS installation Working alone I installed a USD5m Flexible Manufacturing System (FMS) in Dubai. It was the first ever machine of its type in the Gulf, and was the centre piece for Camtech’s oil pipeline valve manufacturing. It consisted of a four machine FMS with a rail guided vehicle and 18 pallet delivery system. The system also had an advanced tool management system. The entire cell and tooling was run from a remote office. This installation normally takes a team of three to four engineers. I managed to complete the installation in the given twelve week period, as well as two stand alone machine tools. My knowledge, commitment, and hard work to the project culminated with the customer offering me the position of production manager. Camtech was where my expat life started.

Additional information RHP/NSK gave me a great apprenticeship and engineering foundation from which I have grown. I worked in the maintenance department as a maintenance fitter, and also in the bearing research centre, where I was tasked with building test rigs to create the typical environment the bearing would be subjected to. Whether it be the working temperature, the cleanliness, the loads imparted onto the bearing, etc. Test rigs would be constantly monitored, with many units being run until bearing failure, and sometimes to its ultimate destruction. Also at RHP/NSK I worked in the remanufacturing department whereupon I would completely strip an old worn out machine, predominantly grinders. All parts on the machine were either repaired or replaced. Paying particular attention to key components like machine ways, ball screws, spindles, culminating in the rebuild being practically to an almost new standard. Cincinnati enabled me to travel the world and experience a multitude of different component metal cutting manufacturing techniques. Whether it be automotive, aerospace, weaponry, medical, to general engineering; each having different part complexities, dimension and finish tolerances and parameters. All having different working conditions and experiences, and all rewarding and very interesting. TEST allowed me into another engineering discipline, namely vacuum, which again gave me more knowledge into where vacuum is used and how it can be best utilised in industries such as the glass industry, vacuum forming, boat and furniture building. Rubber, paint, gold, and even fruit juice manufacturing, all the way through to the electronics industry. At Camtech, TEST and SVI, I constantly consider the commercial side; always looking to improve business processes, supplier performance to best suit the companies needs and KPI’s. Still having ‘hands on’ in certain areas, I have been able to take my practical knowledge to assist in and improve on customer designs and use it to implement various cost reduction exercises that require ‘out of the box’, ‘value add’ and ‘value engineering’ options. From building bearing test rigs as a fitter, remanufacturing and retrofitting machine tools, or as a service engineer travelling the world seeing many varied machined parts. In my expat life manufacturing oil pipeline valves, working on and designing vacuum systems for a multitude of industries, and at SVI in the contract manufacturing environment. I bring experience and practical ‘hands on’ knowledge which in-turn allows me to assist, assess, and share ideas on various subjects. Be it, maintenance and customer service, production techniques, and vacuum technology, sourcing and procurement strategies. Whilst managing the teams in Thailand and China, I have also been able to develop staff, some who were even considered as ‘lost causes’, and take them to a higher level. I very much enjoy the coaching side, especially seeing staff grow with both knowledge and confidence. Please let me know if you have any questions or need further information on my experience. Warm regards. Howard Roberts. If a reference is required, I can give you the contact details of former SVI Global Sourcing Director Wayne Ellis.