President’s Foreword First, I would like to begin by welcoming the BFPA members to this year’s edition of the BFPA Yearbook & Members’ Directory. Over the past 18 months there has been a transformation to our lives not seen in generations, not only as an industry but as a nation In January 2022, having made positive steps to recovery after the COVID pandemic, the country entered a cost-ofliving crisis. Food prices rose, rents and mortgages climbed and energy costs soared. February ended with the invasion of Ukraine, which created further instability in the energy market. Over the summer, two prime ministers resigned back-to-back, and then in September we mourned the loss of Queen Elizabeth II. Safe to say, it has hardly been the 18 months of health and wealth we all had hoped for off the back of the pandemic. However, the fluid power industry does not stop and nor shall we. We are keen to concentrate on the topic of service as our focus in 2023. As well as offering a range of benefits to its members, the BFPA commits itself as a service to our industry. Yet, this can only be achievable with a strong and resolute team behind it. Whilst heading off to pastures new, former CEO Chris Buxton’s departure in 2021 left a significant gap in the Association’s operations. Chris’s renowned knowledge of industry regulations and his passion for bettering the interest of our industry on a government level turned out to be a difficult position to fill. Whilst this posed a challenge it was one that we were not going to back down from, and towards the end of 2021 the BFPA welcomed Paul Cooke as Interim CEO. Paul had recently returned from working for Bosch Rexroth in the US and, having previously held the position of BFPA President, was the perfect candidate to steer the Association into 2022. During the autumn, the BFPA held its strategy event where key industry areas, or ‘pillars of industry’ as they are known, were discussed. These pillars include Health and Safety, Environment, Standards, Training and Legislation to name a few and from these Paul developed a structured framework to ensure it best fit the needs of the BFPA and its members. Paul Cooke’s valuable tenure as Interim CEO came to its planned conclusion and in late 2022 the search for a new permanent Managing Director began. Following a comprehensive recruitment campaign, supported by Rebecca Galley and Steve Cardew, the BFPA was delighted to announce Christopher Butcher as its new Managing Director. With over 25 years of industry experience, both as an engineer and in business development, Chris has been involved in many aspects of manufacturing, engineering and commercial processes, gaining skills as an adept communicator, knowledgeable mentor and motivated leader. Chris’s drive and commitment to empower his teams, improve business performance and supply a confident customer experience whilst ensuring management team accountability, made him the ideal candidate for this esteemed position. Lastly, one further significant personnel change at the BFPA was the retirement of Yvonne Pearman. Yvonne, best known for managing and promoting the BFPA’s technical standards work, said goodbye after 18 years, and we wished her all the best for a long and happy retirement. Although change is a challenge, I am proud the BFPA team has pulled together and will continuously strengthen the fluid power Industry through its service and hard work with the key pillars of industry. There is a dedicated feature with context and viewpoints offered by the Team Leaders for each respective pillar within this yearbook. The BFPA is now in its strongest ever position and is primed and ready to take the industry to the next level. Let’s raise the service bar. Raising the service bar www.bfpa.co.uk 3 John Farmer, BFPA President
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