Fahad joined Heyside through our partnership with the University of Salford funded by Innovate UK, bringing expertise in robotics, automation, and advanced manufacturing to support the company’s strategic development.

He’s joined us to lead the development and implementation of robotics and automation across our factory, with a focus on improving production processes, increasing efficiency, and developing new automated manufacturing capabilities.

“The objective for me is to apply my expertise in advanced manufacturing, robotics and automation to Heyside’s production environment, bridging the gap between academia and industry, and developing practical solutions that can transform the way we manufacture,” says Fahad.

“It means looking at every aspect of production and identifying where robotics and automation can add value, from painting and material handling through to palletising, with the aim of developing a more efficient, connected and automated manufacturing operation,” he continues.

"The injection moulding industry has traditionally involved a lot of manual processes, with cutting, trimming, and painting, and so on. It means that Heyside is one of the first companies to be properly thinking about the future, and how robotics and automation can be used to create better products for customers, while increasingly operational efficiency,” explains Fahad.

“I’m looking at how multiple factory processes can be improved. One is the painting station, where we’re trialling the use of a robot to paint our products with the expectation it will reduce our paint usage. This will in turn reduce production costs, whilst speeding up how fast we can get products out the door,” says Fahad.

After this, Fahad and the rest of the team will move onto the wider factory, looking out how manual handling and the overall layout of our site can be improved.

“The next step will be to look at a palletising and stacking system next year, which will involve more robotics design work, and a potential rethink in how our products move from station to station on our production line,” Fahad continues.

He champions Heyside’s “great and supportive” atmosphere as playing an important part in introducing new tools and technology to the manufacturing process, saying “everyone helps each other”.

“The overarching goal of bringing in robotics and automation in is to improve cycle times, improve product quality, and improve health and safety,” says Fahad.

“My goal is to use robotics and automation to transform the way we manufacture, creating smarter, more efficient and safer processes that will support Heyside’s growth for years to come,” he concludes.