HRH The Princess Royal is to visit Focus SB
Image: Alex Lloyd, Zoom Photography Ltd.
Focus SB looks forward to welcoming Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal to our factory in November!
A Royal Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering since 2010 and Patron of more than 300 organisations, including several in engineering, Her Royal Highness is Patron of Women into Science and Engineering (WISE), and has done much to support and encourage women to take up engineering as a career.
Given the good news by the Lord-Lieutenant of East Sussex, the whole company is over the moon that The Princess Royal, who has a keen interest in sustainable manufacturing, is to visit us in person for a private factory tour in November, in the very same year we succeeded as a winner in the first ever King’s Awards for Enterprise and formally recognised for excellence in International Trade.
Our Managing Director Gary Stevens who was fortunate enough to meet His Majesty King Charles III at a reception for all the winners at Buckingham Palace in June of this year is ecstatic to discover Focus SB has been selected for this prestigious royal visit and is looking forward to welcoming The Princess Royal to our St Leonards on Sea head office and main factory, where Her Royal Highness will learn about our in-house production capabilities, meet our employees and discover how we support our local communities, in particular our work with Little Gate Supported Employment, together with our industry-first successes and our commitment to a sustainable manufacturing future for the company!
Gary says: “It’s a huge honour for an SME based in Hastings to have the recognition of a King’s Award, one of the most prestigious awards a company can be bestowed, but in addition to that, meeting The King at Buckingham Palace and then to have a visit from Anne, The Princess Royal is a huge boost and reward for every single employee at Focus SB, without whom, none of this would have been possible.
I have been in manufacturing of electrical products all of my career and I started off as a 16-year-old technical apprentice and have worked my way through various businesses from technical to marketing, sales and general management and I have been an MD of two manufacturing companies, including currently with Focus SB.
He continues: "I am passionate about manufacturing and introducing more young people into manufacturing and encouraging them to take up apprenticeships, I would like to think that we are doing our bit here at Focus SB by working with local educational establishments, employment agencies and local charities to fulfil that goal, and that my own journey can act as a beacon for those young people who may be thinking about a career in manufacturing and what can be achieved. After all, manufacturing accounts for 2.6 million jobs in the UK and we are the 8th largest manufacturing country in the world!”
