Meet the Team: David Halling

In our latest Meet the Team feature we find out more about Ficep UK’s Technical Support Manager, David Halling, including how he started in the industry, his favourite part of the role and his outlook for the future.

Tell us about your background

My background is in thermoplastic injection moulding. My father was an electrician, but for some reason he guided me on a different career path. So, I started out on a five-year apprenticeship at a business called L&P Plastics, moving through different areas of the business, with a final year working in maintenance.

On completion, I continued at night-school and gained a qualification in engineering management. Over the next 10 years I progressed in L&P Plastics, which became Flambeau Europlast, until I finally ended up as maintenance manager. After 20 years working for the same company, I made the move to Silver Spring Soft Drinks, where I was still involved in thermoplastic injection moulding as part of the bottle making process. 

What brought you to Ficep?

In my younger years I had always thought about becoming a service engineer, travelling the UK, meeting and supporting different people and businesses, but due to having young children this was never an option, later in life I saw it as an opportunity to make a move and found the perfect role at Ficep.

I started out as a service engineer employed primarily for a major installation on the south coast and have progressed since then as a technical support engineer and now technical support manager.

What does your role involve?

My role covers most things within the service department, from scheduling engineers to liaising with our parent company on major machine projects. I have a team of three who report to me and who cover the phone support on machine and software issues, as well as the coordination of machine servicing and contracts.

What do you enjoy most about your role?

I enjoy the variety. No day is the same – there is always something new to keep me challenged and there are always different customers to talk to. I also enjoy knowing we are helping customers who would otherwise be stuck without our first-class service.

What is the secret to your success?

My success is down to the people I work with. Without the dedication of the colleagues I work with at Ficep, whether that be my team or others within the business, we would not be able to continue to expand as a business.

What does the future hold?

The future is looking positive but challenging at the same time. However, we are extremely hard working and pride ourselves in overcoming challenges and maintaining and improving our current service level, especially with the capable team we are developing.