National Online Meet-up with Direct Air & Pipework, Teledyne Valeport Ltd & UCB

Join our Industry Meet-up!

Join us for a focused People & Skills special, bringing together industry experts, thought leaders, and professionals to explore one of the most critical drivers of manufacturing success - people.
Our Industry Meet-up series is designed to foster collaboration, inspire innovation, and share practical insights that drive real impact. Each session features engaging talks from experienced speakers, alongside interactive roundtable discussions.

This special edition is focused on how businesses are evolving their people, skills and culture to meet the demands of modern manufacturing.

Join us for this powerful and inspiring 75-minute event designed to spark ideas, share best practice, and support growth across the manufacturing community.

May's lineup of speakers and Roundtable Session subtopics includes:

• Allan Dolby – Managing Director, Direct Air & Pipework

How “Skills for Life” Is Helping Direct Air Build Engineers for a Service-Led Future (People & Skills)

As manufacturing becomes more service-led and customer-focused, the skills engineers need are changing. Technical ability remains essential, but long-term success now depends on adaptability, communication and trust.

In this session, Allan Dolby, Managing Director of Direct Air, shares how a “skills for life” approach is helping the business develop engineers who grow with the organisation. Drawing on real apprentice journeys, Allan will explore how combining engineering fundamentals with digital skills and a service mindset is building long-term capability and supporting a modern manufacturing model.

• Neil Davies – Head of Engineering, University College Birmingham

T Levels in 2026: What They Mean for Manufacturing Employers (People & Skills)

Manufacturers continue to face a skills gap, yet many remain unclear on how T Levels fit into the talent pipeline.

With evolving delivery models and new pathways emerging, the system can feel complex - particularly for SMEs balancing day-to-day operations with long-term workforce planning.

Drawing on insights from the Midlands T Level Ambassador Network, Neil Davies will explore how manufacturers are engaging in practice - from hosting placements to shaping curriculum and identifying future apprentices.

This session will provide a clear, practical view of how T Levels can support your wider people strategy, and what employers should be considering as the system continues to evolve.

•  Amelia Wakeham - Continual Improvement Manager, Teledyne Valeport

How Manufacturers Can Build Continuous Improvement Talent from Within (People & Skills)

Continuous improvement is critical for competitiveness, yet many manufacturers - particularly SMEs - lack dedicated CI resource and struggle to hire experienced specialists.

In this session, Amelia Wakeham shares how improvement capability can be developed from within. Drawing on her own journey from administration into operations and CI leadership, she will explore how businesses can identify and grow internal talent.

Using practical examples from Teledyne Valeport, including initiatives to improve communication and cross-team engagement, Amelia will show how involving people earlier leads to stronger adoption and more effective outcomes.

This session will provide a clear, practical perspective on building a culture where improvement is owned across the organisation - not just by a single function.

Agenda

9:00 AM – Members join the virtual meeting
9:02 AM – Official welcome and event start
9:02–9:10 AM – Community updates and announcements
9:10–9:38 AM – Best Practice Talks from Made Community speakers (1, 2 & 3)
Topics include people & skills, growth strategies, smart factories, and sustainable manufacturing
(Each talk: 5–8 minutes)
9:40 AM – Member Virtual Roundtable Sessions
Members join their chosen session via the Made Platform events page
10:10 AM – Return to the main room for final remarks and goodbyes