What’s your job, convert?

What’s your job, convert?

Head of Design in an independent secondary school (and some other bits and bobs). The Conran connection….well, it’s not your average school, and through the ‘day job’ I have a bit to do with the Design museum & Benchmark too.

Our Dyson has been great over the last 14 years. Had it serviced once and all that time.
Now going to get a Miele.

Useless piece of info here, my Nephew used flat share with James Dyson’s son.

We’ve got a DC04. It’s ancient. It’s never been serviced. We wash the filters and clean out the hoses every so often. It still works fine.

I’d buy another.

Convert, a quick Google suggests he never fell out with the Conrans but the museum director

That’s interesting to know, convert. I think we may talk again as I’m studying Design [postgrad now] 🙂

I could apply to build a block of flats in your garden. Doesn’t mean I could then build it.

awesome, glad we’ve cleared that up…
anyway, 5000 engineering jobs – also awesome, but more so, however if he genuinely supported manufacturing in this country he would do it, put his money where is mouth is, and invest in it. these aren’t hard manual labour jobs we’re talking about, just production work in what would appear to have the potential to be a clean, safe working environment. these are just the jobs the country needs – not everyone is cut out to be a design engineer or an inventor after all.
if you’re developing enough stuff to employ 5000 engineers you’re probably making enough stuff to employ directly at least 15k, if not many more, plus throw in all the employment that would hang off the back of that.
i am genuinely not trying to detract from what good he does do, but ‘government doesn’t support manufacturing in this country’ doesn’t wash. it would be a brave minister, civil servant, or councilman who thought they could turn down that size of an employer pretty much anything they wanted, and his continued repetition of that mantra in the media grates i’m afraid.

Convert, a quick Google suggests he never fell out with the Conrans but the museum director

You have clearly never had dinner with Terrence. To be fair there is still a fair bit of respect but he ‘fell out’ with the trustees of the DM – one of whom was TC. There may be a board of trustees at the DM but be under no illusion as to who pulls the policy strings there.

if he genuinely supported manufacturing in this country he would do it, put his money where is mouth is, and invest in it.

Such as supporting UK start ups, entrepreneurs, assisting patent filing, training engineers, designers and managers? That sort of thing not enough for you? You think every person he helps will then head to the far east? He has been a big boost to UK manufacturing even if you once read that he moved his vacuum cleaner production to Malaysia. Not building production lines here is evidence that is hard to do economically in the UK and that something needs to be done, and not hypocrisy at all.

i am genuinely not trying to detract from what good he does do

It doesn’t read like that. I’m sure he could do more but I’m also pretty happy that he does enough, and a lot more than most. He also pays his tax if that counts for anything

Its not possible to do mass production manufacturing in this country. The costs are just too high and we offer no value over other cheaper countries. Its just not viable. When you’ve got guys demanding £25k – £30k per year wages for semi-skilled jobs and all the hassle of unions, H&S and other UK and EU costly bureacracy then why on earth would you base a mass production manufacturing facility in the UK? Its a nonsense to expect the government ot subsidise it too. We’re good at low to medium volume production of high tech parts and products that require an element of skill to produce – satelites, Aero Engines, niche and bespoke carbon fibre parts for F1 etc.

I thought Dyson has the R&D and all the intellectual property based in the UK and the cheap, low skilled mass production work in other countries.

There is only the car production that seems to work in the UK, but I suspect that is mainly due to signficant tax breaks offered to the car companies coupled with locational convenience for the car companies (less shipping of cars around the world, regional variation in car models and designs for specific markets etc). Its a different kettle of fish for vacuum cleaners, mobile phones, computers, that are small, light and easily transported globally.

I agree with @wobbliscott labour intensive manufacturing is a thing of the past in this country.

I worked for Dyson for a few years before they shut down production and a few afterwards.

They always maintained that production would never move abroad. There was a story at the time that he could not expand because he fell out with a local landowner who would not sell him some land (not sure how true that was).

The reality was that the company was falling on hard times, copies were emerging along with pattern spare parts, falling sales and the doomed washing machine. The only way they could compete was to move manufacturing out of the UK. A sorry state but it is an all too common reality.

There was a huge felling of betrayal because of what had been promised previously but (if you believe what was said) the company had no choice.

It was incredibly hard for the production workers and the many small companies who supported the UK production facility.

Engineering had a reprieve as did some of the operating functions.

Dyson continues to be a large employer and they are doing a lot to reinvigorate interest in engineering qualifications (by working with local schools and colleges).

The early cleaners were bombproof (our DC04 has been going for years). I think they lost their way a bit with the ball cleaner. We recently bought one of the handheld cleaners and it is brilliant. You cannot clean the whole house with it on one charge but it is so quick and easy to use.

Did you know their head of research is a mountain biker?

A slow girly mountain biker, but still a mountain biker.

Short answer: Miele

Reddit thread on this topic last year. Vaccume cleaner technician. So knows his shit:
https://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/1pe2bd/iama_vacuum_repair_technician_and_i_cant_believe/

Just skimmed through that reddit thread and I’d say ‘talks a lot of shit’ rather than ‘knows his shit’

Dyson all the way, we’ve just had to replace our first one after 10 years stirling service, needless to say we’ve brought another Dyson.

As for the Henry advocates, are you sure you want this in your house? 😆

http://youtu.be/CmC62Eg82E8

Oreck – Singlespeed of vacuums. Can destroy its own cable if your not careful.

Henrys good suck but pole doesn’t stay together too well.