Jayson Exley, Head of electrical engineering

Our head of electrical engineering, Jayson Exley, has been a member of the Sewtec team for six years. We caught up with Jayson to get his thoughts on what it’s like to work here and what he thinks of our new facility for our latest day in the life feature. 

Q. Tell us about your typical working day

Jayson Exley (JE): My typical working day starts with a coffee, a sit down at my desk and a minute to gather my thoughts. I check the resource plans and make sure that the relevant electricians and electrical designers are organised and allocated to the higher priority projects. I tend to delegate a lot more now but I still like to have a hands-on approach when time permits with the electrical design.

I’ll then begin looking at the ordering and when the Bill of Materials for projects can been submitted to the buying department. This is followed with a check on the status of the projects from an electrical design perspective, then by a check on whether an electrical build can begin or what status an electrical build is at.

During the course of the day I might be called into internal meetings to discuss the status of projects or design reviews with customers. Sales also ask for assistance with electrical costings for their quotes. This typically involves reading through their specifications, interpreting their requirements and costing these up against the solution that’s been modelled up in the quoted solution.

Not everything works to plan (it would be easy if it were) and when it doesn’t, that’s when you are tested at Sewtec. It might be ordering a different type of sensor or replacing a pneumatic module with a servo driven actuator for a quicker response time.

No two days are ever the same though…

Q. What made you choose a career in automation?

JE: I wanted a career that was varied and interesting. Automation always seems to be reinventing itself.

Collaborative Robots for processing parts with human operators, automatic guided vehicles for collecting and unloading materials to machines, virtual operator stations for checking machine operation, sensors that notify you when they need replacing…it’s endless how new technology will transform what we build and integrate.

Q. What would you say the best thing about working at Sewtec is?

JE: I’d definite say that the mix of different people at Sewtec is the best thing about working here. We have a good balance of experience and youth. There are lots of different disciplines under one roof at Sewtec all working harmoniously together but still wanting to achieve the same goals by delivering an automated solution to a customer site that meets and, more often than not, exceeds their expectations.

Q. Name three characteristics you would say are needed to work in automation?

JE: The three characteristics I’d say you need for a career in automation are:

Teamwork – Because Automation is so varied, one person does not have all the answers. You’ll regularly see a group of engineers brainstorming to try and come up with a solution to a problem or trying to make improvements to an existing piece of automation.

Innovation – No matter what discipline you work in at Sewtec, be prepared to sometimes think outside the box or offer the latest technology to a solution.

Passion – When you look at any machine we build, you can see the passion that people put into their pieces of the jigsaw. Whether it’s the components that have been manufactured in house, the fitting of the mechanical equipment, the welds on the fabricated frames, the piping runs on the pneumatic assemblies, the wiring of the electrical components or the seamless operator H.M.I. screens, you can tell that everyone cares about what there areas on the finished product.

Q. What’s been your proudest moment whilst working at Sewtec?

JE: My proudest moments at Sewtec seem to come from imparting the knowledge I’ve gained in automation over the last 32 years of my career to the younger engineers which are starting their careers here. It’s great to see our apprentices and younger engineers coming through the ranks and setting high standards in their workmanship.

Q. Do you feel inspired by working as part of an award-winning team?

JE: It’s fantastic to be recognised as an award-winning team and it’s certainly inspiring. The Sewtec ethos of continuing to innovate and driving our build standards higher should be recognised!

Everyone at Sewtec wants to provide the best solution for our customers. The awards have been won because of all the hard work that has been put in over the years.

Q. How have you developed your skills whilst working at Sewtec?

JE: Whilst working at Sewtec I’ve found a number of my skills have developed. We have a fantastic training program which the HR department has rolled out. We regularly receive training in the form of online courses and webinars or the more conventionally training courses at suppliers’ facilities.

Q. What do you make of Sewtec’s move to the brand-new facility at Wakefield?

JE: Sewtec’s relocation to the brand-new facility at Wakefield has been incredible. We can now present the automated solutions we manufacture in a factory that matches the build quality that we offer.

Q. How do you think the new facility will help improve your day-to-day role and help the business grow?

JE: The new facility has improved my day-to-day role by providing the space for everything to be located under one roof. We had outgrown our previous facility and were managing project builds in various location around Yorkshire. By having everyone and everything in one location, all the departments can interact better which will result in improvements across all disciplines.

Q. What aspirations do you have for your career at Sewtec moving forward?

JE: My aspirations for my career at Sewtec moving forward are to continue to add value to Sewtec Automation solutions. The technology we use and integrate is always been improved or replaced and the key is to be innovative in how we utilise and integrate this into our solutions.

If you like the sound of working at Sewtec, visit our Careers page for more details on our current vacancies.