A chemical research and development company based in Bowburn, Co Durham in the UK, High Force Research (HFR), has announced a boardroom reshuffle following the retirement of Founding and Managing Director Bob Redfern, after 27 years with the company.
Redfern will remain as a director, working one day a week, to continue supporting the management team.
Research Director Dr Roy Valentine has been appointed Chief Executive and the third co-founder, Stuart Penny, continues as Operations Director.
In further boardroom changes, HFR has appointed Zoe Lilburn as Head of Quality; Dr Barry Thompson has been promoted to Development Manager; Dr Nicola Lembicz becomes Research Manager and Dr Stella James has been appointed as Head of Business Development.
Redfern co-founded the firm in 1988, with the company initially based at the Mountjoy Research Centre in Durham, before a relocation to its current base at Bowburn in 1996. He previously worked as Commercial Manager at Wendstone Chemicals in Billingham.
He said: 'We started with three people and we have just taken on our 27th member of staff in our 27th year, which reflects the growth of the company. Many of our recruits are graduates from North East universities, and we currently sponsor research at Durham and Newcastle universities and have plans to recruit two apprentices this year.
'There are plans for further expansion in line with what our customers want us to do.
'With recent expansion of HFR's laboratories providing the space for further growth, I believe that it is now a good time for me to step back from day-to-day involvement in running the company, giving opportunities for existing members of staff to take on greater responsibilities.'
HFR carries out process development and production of new Active Pharmaceuticals Ingredients (APIs) for use in early clinical trials, working also on drug delivery systems, imaging agents, reagents for diagnostics and advanced materials.
Redfern added: 'A striking feature of the latest innovations in these areas is that Chemistry, Physics, Biology, Medicine and Electronics are converging to give technologies which will have a big impact on our lives. HFR is well positioned for future growth in this fast-changing world.'
Dr Valentine started as a laboratory technician at Ciba Geigy and, after a variety of key roles, he set up Wendstone Chemicals, where he was appointed Research Director. He then co-founded HFR with Redfern and Penny.
