| On 6th January 2020 experienced Technical Engineer Chris John moved across to join the Technical Team at GfA. A well-known name and face in the door industry we’ve taken this opportunity to talk to Chris about the last 10 years with GfA and his wider experience in the door industry. Tell us about your experience in the industrial door industry
I suppose I’m what you might call a poacher come game-keeper as I started out my career with a door manufacturer in my home town of Bolton. I joined their electrical department straight from college and was given the opportunity to work on all different types of doors, gates, barriers, roller shutters, sectional and folding doors. In 1997 an opportunity arose to join Garog, the tube motor manufacturer taken over by GfA in 2010. At Garog I was employed to work on the electrical design for systems and special motors. During the 13 years I spent there I had a wide remit, everything from technical back-up, working on the development of new products, site visits and training for customers. What does your role at GfA involve?
I joined the Sales Team at GfA in 2010 as the technical champion for Garog products, providing technical support on the Garog range as well as selling suitable replacement products. As I became familiar with GfA products my role expanded to provide sales and technical support to customers across the full range. I’ve also been responsible for writing and delivering Product Training Sessions for customers over the last couple of years. My new role as part of the GfA UK Technical Team will see me continuing to provide the same level of technical support and advice to customers and put even more focus on developing our Training Programme to meet the needs of customers. I’m qualified in electrical installation, design of electrical installations and CAD. This experience means there aren’t many door challenges or problems I haven’t come across. What’s changed over the last 30 years in the door industry?
The biggest change is the introduction of a wide range of regulations which affect the industry. This makes it more challenging for door companies and their engineers to be compliant, hence the training that we offer. Chris, who splits his time between Warwick and Bolton joins the existing Technical Team shown below. |
