Kirkstall Precision is entering its next chapter with a simple promise to our people and our customers: more focus, more capability, and the same uncompromising standards you count on. As part of the Kaleidex Group, we’re aligning leadership so that expertise is pointed exactly where it delivers most value.
This means that Adam Thornton has stepped into a group-level commercial role, while Giles Hodgson, who joined the team earlier this year, has taken the reins as Site Leader at Kirkstall, responsible for delivering every order, every day, to the quality and timelines our partners expect.
What does this mean in practice? Continuity where it matters, and added horsepower where it helps. Adam’s move strengthens Kaleidex’s customer-facing capability, opening doors to broader services and capacity across multiple sites, while Giles brings deep manufacturing leadership to unlock speed, consistency and “right-first-time” performance across the Kirkstall site..
Adam describes the move as an enabler for customers: “As Commercial Lead for Kalediex, I can bring our clients the combined capabilities of multiple sites while keeping the close, technical relationships we’ve built at Kirkstall. It means more ways to say yes, and deliver right first time.”
Giles’s mandate is equally clear: create the conditions where great people can do their best work, every shift. With a background spanning lean manufacturing, operations consultancy, and site leadership in medical devices, he’s focused on the foundations that lift quality and output simultaneously; clear roles, safe and tidy workplaces, OpEx, and robust planning before a job ever hits the machine.
As Giles puts it: “The product leaving our door has always been good. The goal now is to improve efficiency, get it right first time, and create a continuous improvement culture.”
That approach is already visible on the shop floor. We’ve strengthened the health and safety culture, introduced team leader roles to give frontline ownership, and freed up technical experts to coach and lift standards across cells.
We’ve also implemented a clearer contract review process, linking quoting, programming, tooling and measurement plans, so production starts with everything in place and runs smoothly. “From enquiry to delivery, we’re building a single, transparent process that removes friction for customers and for our teams,” Giles notes.
Investment follows intent. As part of the Kaleidex Group, Kirkstall has access to targeted capex that supports precision, throughput and automation. We are evaluating an additional automated 5-axis machining cell, a new multi-axis sliding-head lathe, and innovative automated measurement solutions that will shorten set-ups, stabilise cycle times and scale inspection for higher-volume implant components such as screws, plates and wedges. “Access to Kaleidex investment lets us add precision where it matters and automate where it helps, so customers see reliable lead times and repeatable quality,” says Giles.
Crucially, none of this changes the way customers, partners and suppliers work with Kirkstall, it enhances it. Adam remains a familiar face and a technical ally, now with the span to connect programmes to the full capability of Kaleidex Group.
“We’re professionalising as we grow, putting the right leaders in the right seats,” Adam explains. “My focus is spending more time with customers and shaping the right solutions across sites, while Giles concentrates on making an already strong factory even stronger.”
Inside the business, the message is the same: clarity and empowerment. Giles has reorganised around clear lines of responsibility and reporting so decisions happen faster and closer to the work. Team leaders own output and productivity; technical leaders like Craig Dowling dedicate more time to coaching; and operational excellence efforts, led by Sarah Wood, such as 5S and SMED are embedding everyday excellence. “Culture is the engine. When people know what’s expected and have the tools and authority to act, performance follows,” says Giles.
For customers, this translates into tangible benefits:
- Shorter, more predictable lead times as planning, programming and tooling are front-loaded and standardised.
- Stable, documented quality supported by automated inspection pathways for higher-volume implant parts.
- Broader capability on tap, multi-site capacity, materials and processes coordinated through Adam’s Commercial Lead role. “The aim is simple: more capacity, more capability, and one accountable team,” Adam adds.
And for the Kirkstall team, it means a clearer runway for growth. People see the standard, own their area, and are supported with the training, tools and programmes to hit it day after day. It’s the compounding effect of small wins: safer areas, tidier benches, smarter programmes, fewer stoppages.
The result is more value on the same assets, and a workplace you’re proud to be part of. “We want that feeling of flow, where everyone knows what great looks like and the hand-offs just work,” says Giles.
If you’ve followed Kirkstall’s story, this step will feel consistent: care for craft, collaboration with clinicians and original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), and innovation applied in the places it truly counts; in the product, on the shop floor and in QC. With leadership aligned to those principles, we’re set up to serve our customers better.
“This change is about doubling down on what customers value, precision, reliability and partnership, while giving our people the structure and investment to thrive,” says Giles. “It’s the right move for Kirkstall, for our clients, and for the Kaleidex Group.”
“Kirkstall is in great hands,” Adam concludes. “I’m excited to open more doors for our customers at group level and to keep building on the relationships that got us here.”
Together, with clear focus, the right leaders and the backing of Kaleidex, we’re ready for what’s next.