Thomas
John Rose was born in Oxford, England, in 1948. He attended Northfield
Secondary Modern School from 1960 to 1965, a LEA state school in Littlemore,
Oxford.
Tom
read for a Bachelor of Science degree at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne, England,
where he obtained an Honours degree in Electrical and Electronic Engineering in
June 1979. In June 1986, Tom was awarded a Master of Science degree in Flexible
Manufacturing Systems from Cranfield Institute of Technology, (now Cranfield University)
England. In 1991 he was one of the first Open University students to be awarded
a MBA degree.
Between
secondary education and his University study, Tom spent 3 years at the Army
Apprentices School, Arborfield, studying electronic control, and then 9 years
in the British Army with the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers. He
served both as a Paratrooper with the Parachute Squadron RAC and 7th
Parachute Regiment Royal Horse Artillery, and as a Commando with 29 Commando
Regiment, Royal Artillery. He saw service in Northern Ireland and with the
United Nations in Cyprus.
Tom’s
work experience includes time as a Soldier, Outward Bound Instructor, Physics
Teacher, Project Engineer, Quality Manager, Technical Manager, and Operations
Director. His key areas of expertise are Industrial control systems and
Business Management.
Organisations
include the British Army, Oxfordshire LEA, GEC Large Machines, Austin Rover,
Metal Box, and a number of SMEs.
Activities
include plant commissioning at the Dinorwig underground power station
construction site, machine control system design, high volume production, small
batch design / production, and design / make to order.
Tom
is currently finishing a PhD research degree at looking at
barriers to SME growth.Cranfield University
Future
perspectives include developing a range of PC products to facilitate the
implementation of both a Process Management Framework and a Continuous
Improvement Framework within SMEs and an entrepreneurial venture both
commercial and as a further test of his thesis in the form of an ‘e’ company,
Busyfish.com
Tom
has been a Member of the IQA since 1983 and a Member of the IEE since 1988. He
is an active canoeist and mountaineer.