Meet the Team: Jonathan Harbison

From private jets to skydiving: we talk to Senior Project Engineer Jonathan Harbison about his career to date, his role here at Ficep UK, and what keeps him entertained outside work.

Tell us about your background

I’ve taken an interesting route into the structural steel world over the last ten years. My first role after finishing university involved working on the upkeep and repair of private jets. From there, I moved into ultrasound machine servicing, working within the NHS, and then took a role as a service engineer in the sheet metal industry. This led me into the structural steel sector, and I joined Ficep four and a half years ago.

What brought you to Ficep?

From the outside looking in, Ficep has always appeared to be best in class in the industry. It’s a truly global business, offering high quality machinery, with a reputation for being the best at what it does. Now, having experienced working in the business and seeing it from the inside, all those things still hold true. They’re also the best machines to work on.

What does your role involve?

My role is to oversee the installation and handover of machines to customers. It starts at the point of sale, and I work with the customer and with our engineers to get their machines installed, set up, and handed over. The role covers everything needed to get the machine into production, it involves integrating automation systems, and spending time on site with customers across the country and beyond. I’m currently overseeing five installations, one of which is in Scandinavia. It’s important that our customers know what needs to be done to get their machine up and running on site, and that our team gives them the support they need to do it. It’s my job to make that happen.

What do you enjoy most about your job?

My favourite part of the job is probably the support aspect for our team of engineers. It’s my job to make sure they have everything they need to make the installation go as smoothly as possible and I enjoy being able to give them that support.

How does your role help customers?

As my job is to get their new machinery into production as quickly as possible, operating at the standard everyone expects, my role helps customers improve productivity and continue to deliver quality products to their customers.

What are your interests outside of work?

I used to be into cars, and I enjoy swimming and going to the gym, but recently I discovered skydiving. I did my first jump last year, and I’m hooked. There’s nothing else like it. I’d love to get my licence and then skydive all around the world.

The role covers everything needed to get the machine into production, it involves integrating automation systems, and spending time on site with customers across the country and beyond.