Project management
Always ready to help, your dedicated project manager will be assigned to you to respond to your needs and queries. From initial contact through to project delivery, they’ll be with you every step of the way.
We bring the best people together
to make great things happen
Tharsus Group board
Operating board
Some of our pack
Joni Rautavuori
Group CEO
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Joni brings many years’ experience running and scaling complex organisations. He led ABB’s Global Robots & Solutions business from the UK between 2015 and 2020 and headed several commercial sustainable technology businesses in the roles of CEO and founder. During his 20 years at ABB, he worked across multiple roles in end-to-end value chains in Finland, China and the UK. Joni also holds a Master’s degree from the University of Cambridge Manufacturing Leaders Programme. Joni’s global experience and expertise building and leading collaborative teams will be invaluable as our business continues to grow.
Richard Laycock
Tharsus Group Chief Financial Officer
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After qualifying and spending the early part of his career at global accountancy firm Arthur Andersen, Richard has spent over 20 years in senior management and C-suite level positions, driving growth in some of the UK’s most significant businesses including FTSE 250 Stobart Group. His sector experience includes Renewable Energy, Aviation, Logistics and Civil Engineering. His experience is key in supporting the next stage of our growth.
David Williams
Chairman
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David has extensive experience and a broad skillset. He brings global experience across engineering, private equity and international business leadership to our senior team.
Martin McCourt
Non-Executive Director
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Martin spent 15 years as CEO for Dyson, and was directly responsible for the establishment of Dyson subsidiaries worldwide. In total, he took Dyson into over 60 markets, achieving market leadership in the majority including the USA.
Brian Palmer
Founder
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Our Founder Brian Palmer led the evolution of Tharsus Group from a small back street setup to the group of disruptor businesses we are today. An engineer and relentless entrepreneur, he is a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering and searches the world for new opportunities and challenges for our Group.
Tim Rutter
Managing Director
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Tim is a Chartered Mechanical Engineer who has worked in manufacturing leadership roles in Rail, Defence, Offshore and General Engineering sectors for over 15 years. He brings significant expertise in building & developing teams and digital transformation in manufacturing. Tim sees the power of teamwork and brings valuable expertise & experience to the business, making him the perfect fit to lead the Wolf Pack in our next stage of our growth journey.
Craig Brown
Business Development Director
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Craig has a long history with Tharsus Group, originally joining the Business Development team at our sister company Tharsus back in 2008, before joining Universal Wolf in 2016. He is passionate about a partnership-led approach to business; and champions collaboration both within the wolf pack, and with our customers.
Paul Lewis
Operations Director
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A qualified Mechanical Engineer, our Operations Director Paul joined us with a background in lean manufacturing, gained through roles within Oil & Gas, Automotive and Construction. He leads our manufacturing teams in championing systems and processes for operational excellence.
Andrew Nicholson
Group Marketing Director
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Andrew joined us following 20 years in brand and marketing at Virgin. Experience with start-ups and launches as well as major rebrands and acquisitions mean he is ideally placed to manage our ongoing brand development and national expansion.
Kerry Patterson
Head of HR
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Kerry leads our Group HR team, looking after colleagues at both Universal Wolf and Tharsus and overseeing our Group’s significant expansion over recent years. She is focussed on ensuring our HR strategy has a real impact on business success; driving the growth of our Apprenticeship and Graduate programmes and the ongoing development of our colleagues.
Craig McFall
Production Supervisor, Metal Profiling
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John Hendry
Team Leader in Training, Bending
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Michael Cole
Production Supervisor, Welding & Fabrication
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Andrew Avery
Technical Sales Manager
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Keith Bell
Quality Manager
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Marie Skinner
Customer Service Administrator
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John Baker
Head of Projects
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James Heslop
Engineering Manager, Engineering & Design
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Julie Pattison
Business Development Lead
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Training
At Universal Wolf, we have a thirst for knowledge. We’re always learning so that we can pass on our knowledge to our customers. To ensure we always deliver the best quality of work, we actively invest in our most prized asset, our people.
Want to join the pack?
