Meet the Naylor Technical Development Team

27th September 2022

We’re proud of our dedicated Technical Team and the contribution they make to driving industry best practice and innovative product development.

In our news roundup, here at Naylor we interviewed our Technical & Development Director, Helen MacIntosh, about the team and the support they provide to Naylor businesses and customers.

Helen, how large is the technical team?
Including myself, we employ 18 technical experts and have plans to recruit an apprentice this Autumn.  Our team comprises our New Product Development Manager, Matthew, three New Product Development Engineers, our Lead Structural Engineer, Masimba, a Structural Engineer and a CAD Technician. Underlining our focus on stringent product testing, our technical development team also includes 10 colleagues who focus solely on quality and compliance.  Our quality and compliance experts include Andrew who is our Group Quality and Compliance Manager, a Quality Assurance Manager, four Quality Engineers, a Concrete Technologist and a Lab Technician. 

How experienced is the team?
Collectively the Naylor technical team has more than 250 years’ experience and includes three industry specialists in the areas of structural engineering, new product development and compliance.  Excluding me, the most experienced member of our team is Andrew, our Group Quality and Compliance Manager.  Andrew has previously worked for major construction products manufacturers and brings more than 30 years’ of experience in the industry.  The team also comprises colleagues who have worked at Naylor for many years including our Quality Assurance Manager, Kirsty, who has worked with us for more than 11 years.  Personally, I began my career as an apprentice more than 40 years’ ago and am proud to continue Naylor’s long-standing commitment to developing its people and to providing them with real opportunities to progress their careers within the Naylor business. 

How does the team support Naylor Industries Plc and its customers?
Our primary areas of focus are new product development and the continuous improvement of existing Naylor products.  Our technical team leads all research and development activities and enables Naylor businesses to provide customers with best-in-class products which have been subject to a stringent product certification and testing process.  Our activities are driven by Naylor’s continued focus on innovation and its commitment to making significant and ongoing investment in R&D. 

What’s your core priority as a team at the moment?
As a CO2nstruct Zero Business Champion, a core priority for us is to lead the industry in the development of low carbon products which help our customers deliver net zero.  To help Naylor achieve its targets, we are currently exploring ways to re-engineer our products so they require less materials to manufacture and a higher percentage of the materials used are recyclable.  

What makes working as part of the Naylor technical team so enjoyable?
No two days are ever the same.  We all get to work on a diverse range of projects and I have the pleasure of working with a talented and dynamic team who are committed to driving innovation and industry best practice, and to supporting each other.