This week in our “5 Questions with…” series, we put the spotlight on Steven Coe, Technical Laboratory Manager at Labcal. Steven has been in this industry for 15 years, six of which with us. Read his story to find out about his spooky pasttimes
Q.1 – What excites you most about Gill and your role here?
No two days are the same at Labcal: one minute I’m working on uncertainty budgets, the next I’m talking with customers about their calibration requirements.
I joined six years ago as a calibration engineer and have progressed to be Lab Manager during that time. Labcal being part of the Gill Group has driven a lot of positive change, and being backed by a larger organisation focused on innovation and growth makes it an exciting place to be as we continue to expand what we do.
Q.2 – You are relatively new to this industry. What interests you most?
After 15 years in the industry I have calibrated quite a large variety of instruments from a High voltage divider a pressure gauge to a Pitot tube and it’s that variety that has kept my interest in this field.
I am now managing the laboratory so my role has changed a fair amount. This has given me a new challenge and a different outlook on the industry which has served to peak my interest further.
Although I do still keep my hand in and occasionally go back to calibrating instruments as I still enjoy it!
Q.3 – How do you see the industry changing in the next five years?
With AI moving into all sorts of areas and industries I can see it playing a part in this industry also.
I see it becoming the norm to have AI helping with all the measurement data we collate and even having a significant part in a Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS) within the lab.
Q.4 – Who has inspired you the most in your career, and what did you learn from them?
There re a number of people I could recall that have influenced me and two in particular that I would say have influenced my career directly.
The first is a manager I worked for at a previous company. He showed me what a really good manager should be and what can be achieved if you treat your staff right.
The second was the a chap called Mike Funnel who looked after the UKAS accreditation at the last company I worked . He gave me the drive to be in the position I am in now, managing the UKAS accreditation for Labcal.
Q.5 – Tell us something about yourself that might surprise us.
I currently hold a purple belt in traditional Jui-Jitsu. I’m also a member of the Hampshire Astronomical Society so I love to star gaze using the clubs telescopes.
I also love anything spooky and have been on many ghost hunts across Hampshire.
