Covered
Covered
Adam is our Head of Sales. We had a brew with him to discover what his working week looks like, the changes he’s seen in the industry, and what he believes will be the biggest trends in the years ahead. Read on to discover more…
How did you get into this role Adam?
I used to work in the fitness industry overseeing gym design and fit outs. I loved the process of seeing a vision turned into reality, so took a gamble and decided to learn about construction by working on sites. I quickly progressed to site management, and that hands on construction and project management experience has given me a real understanding of my clients’ needs and challenges today.
Tell us a bit about your average working week…
There’s no such thing! But that’s what I love about the role. One week I could be doing a site visit up in the Scottish Highlands and the next I could be in our West Sussex factory overseeing the construction of one of our many ‘industry firsts’.
What do you find most rewarding about the role?
I’m a people person so I value the relationships I have built over the years. We’re a close-knit team here and because we put so much into each of our projects, we’re lucky enough to have clients that come back to us time and again, and that become friends.
What kind of projects do you most enjoy working on?
I’m a sports fanatic so anything sports related gives me a buzz because I know how much enjoyment our canopies will bring to those using the facilities. For instance, it was great to see teams practising at the world’s first hybrid cricket facility that we created at Bradford Park Avenue, in conjunction with the ECB and Total Play.
I also really enjoy working in the education sector. It’s rewarding to see sites struggling with limited funds, totally transformed by cost-effective, ingenious solutions.
What has been one of the biggest changes you’ve seen in the past five years?
We’ve seen a massive shift in the size of canopies being requested. We used to max out at canopies of 20m, but now the structures we build regularly go up to 40m+ and that’s a trend that’s set to continue. We installed the UK’s largest retail canopy at Simpsons garden centre in Inverness in 2021 and have been inundated with requests for similar canopies ever since.
Which recent projects have made you most proud?
I’m proud of the way we have quickly established ourselves as the UK’s leading provider of Padel Court canopies and of the role we are playing in seeing that sport take off across the country, working with huge names such as Nottingham Lawn Tennis Centre, PadelStars and Powerleague to help them realise the benefits that installing padel courts can bring.
Looking forward what do you predict will be the biggest trends in the next five years?
I think post covid, we’ll continue to see more and more people embracing hybrid indoor / outdoor living and that we’ll see those across the retail, education, sport and leisure and holiday and attraction sectors looking for increasingly ingenious ways of enabling people to enjoy the outdoors year-round.
And of course, we’re seeing more and more clients wanting sustainability to be at the heart of their design, which is something we’re passionate about at Fordingbridge. We’re installing lots of green roof and solar panel canopies and have just installed our first ever EV charging canopy at an office development in Hampshire. Given how quickly this area of our work is evolving I can’t wait to see what the future holds.
And what do you predict will be the future for Fordingbridge?
I’m confident we’ll continue to grow rapidly, but I’m also confident that we’ll never lose our close relationships or commitment to continually pushing the boundaries. That’s what ultimately keeps me here.
