Damian Durrant is Holchem’s Warehouse Manager. It is an important role within the company, so we are finding out more about Damian and what the job entails.
Damian, how long have you been Holchem’s Warehouse Manager?
I’ve been in the role for just over two years now.
What was your career path to the role?
I’ve had quite a varied career. I started out in local newspapers as an apprentice compositor and over 17 years I worked my way to the heady heights of the senior management team. During this time I saw many changes in technology and oversaw the movement of the prepress department to an entirely paper-free environment. From there, due to redundancy, I relocated with my family, Helen & Fred from Derbyshire to Lancashire and started on a fresh career path using the operational skills I had learnt and transferred them to operations teams in Research & Development in the chemical industry, the textile Industry and now the Hygiene Chemical Industry with Holchem. Along the way Henry has joined the family and we all live in a lovely village in the Ribble Valley.
What responsibilities does your job include?
My job is to successfully manage the day to day running of the warehouse team, working closely with all departments to ensure orders are fulfilled and delivered on time. It’s a fundamental part of the day to day running of the company and our relationship with our customers. I manage our fleet of FLTs, ensuring training is up to date. I also handle all returning stock and authorising relevant credits. I am also a member of the Major Accidents and Hazards team and that involves a lot of planning, training and constant updates on a regular basis.
What’s your favourite part of your job?
My favourite part of the job is working with the warehouse team and finding solutions to the inevitable problems that crop up in a fast-moving business such as ours. It’s a very fast paced environment so we all work together to come up with the best solutions as quickly as possible.
What Does A Typical Day Look Like?
As with every role here at Holchem no two days are the same but the common theme that runs through every day is striving to make the service we provide as efficient as possible to ensure the best customer service. I'm also often found donning my high vis and working with the team on the shop floor to make sure the job is done
What Would Your Dream Job Be?
My first dream was to be a professional footballer but that wasn’t to be. I am now an FA Level 1 coach for a local club, currently coaching under 15s which ensures I’m involved in the beautiful game. Then I moved on to dreaming of being a professional golfer and, since the age of 15, I have played off a 4 handicap. When I was 16, I was offered an assistant professional job at my local club. After discussions with my family I decided to get a trade first and to be fair I have not looked back.
