This Is Tees Valley This Is Tees Valley - Issue 1 2020 | Page 52

ITS what we do!
A
fter 30 years
in business
serving
high-calibre
industries,
there’s one thing Malcolm
Knott is certain of.
When it comes to the
Tees Valley, there’s a 'can-
do' attitude that simply
will not be beaten.
Any problem, any
issue, any questions, says
Malcolm, and the general
answer is if we can help,
WORDS: JOANNE BARRETT
PICTURE: CHRIS BOOTH
we will – and invariably
with the wide and
deep-rooted skill set that
new Natural baby bottle line produced
exists within the North-East, we can find a
by Philips Avent; traceability systems
solution.
for pharmaceuticals from raw materials
And that’s what ITS all about – quite
to finished tablets, syringes and liquids;
literally.
a solution for a major food industry
ITS, or to give the company its full title,
manufacturer to ensure trays of food jars
Industrial Technology Systems, is on the
reach retailers without any mistakes – and
brink of celebrating three decades designing,
that’s not to mention process systems that
manufacturing and implementing complex
keep workers on plants around the world
control and management information
safe as well as improving efficiency and
systems for some of the world’s industry
monitoring.
giants across sectors as diverse as chemical
All from an unassuming office on
processing to nuclear to pharmaceuticals to
Riverside Park in Middlesbrough where MD
aviation.
Malcolm and his team of specialist engineers
In technical terms, the Middlesbrough-
and solution finders work their magic.
based firm describes itself as an
“ITS has been running for 30 years this
"independent automation systems integrator,
October and it is rare for a business like ours
designing real time information displays to
improve the performance of manufacturing." to be around for that long,” says Malcolm.
“At the moment, we are investing in a
In layman’s terms, that can mean a
programme of scaling up to equip all of our
very varied, specialist and often sensitive
staff with responsibility and knowledge to
workload.
drive the quality of the company forward
ITS' systems span the world with projects
and ultimately to see productivity increase.
in Japan, the United States, China and India
“We are very much about our customers
as well as Northern Europe and throughout
and looking to see what else we can do for
the UK, serving a client list that includes
them, where we can move forward and
the likes of AstraZeneca, Sellafield, Venator,
better ways to help them.
SABIC, Lucite and GSK to name but a few.
“80% of our business comes through
Recent projects have included the
repeat business, recommendations and word
design and implementation of a system
of mouth and that’s part of what we are
that improves the performance of baggage
trying to drive through with new customers.”
handling systems at Gatwick Airport, the
Malcolm, a chemical engineer by
busiest single runway airport in the world.
trade, was ICI-trained and launched
ITS has also designed and installed
ITS with the aim of providing a"one-
systems to maximise the efficiency of the
Positive approach – ITS managing
director Malcolm Knott says the Tees
Valley region has a “can-do attitude”.
stop shop" for management information
and process control systems. It quickly
evolved to offer vision systems, technical
and regulatory training services as well as
regulatory compliance services and project
management and engineering services.
It has always been customer demand-
driven with a desire to provide solutions for
whatever is asked.
That, in part, is what drives Malcom – and
still fires him up.
“Teesside is seen as an industrial area,
things have changed from the days of ICI,
British Steel and yet the basics are the same,”
he says. “What I love about the area is that
it has always had that ‘can-do’ attitude.
Whatever it is, Teesside can do it.”
ICI and the like paved the way for a skilled
workforce with a wide base knowledge and
companies like ITS have built on that and
are driving innovative industry solutions
forwards.
“When I first started out as an apprentice,
our department’s job was to take processes
and improve them and that gave me a drive
to look for better ways to do that – it still
fires me up today,” he adds.
As for the future, the upscaling
programme at ITS is in full swing and
proving successful. The team are constantly
looking for new ways they can serve their
customers – data, how it is managed, stored
and displayed is just one of them.
So, as they say, watch this cyberspace.
Industrial Technology Systems, ITS House, High Force Road, Riverside Park, Middlesbrough TS2 1RH | its-ltd.co.uk
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