Tom Russell is a Senior Process Development Engineer at ICS Medical Devices. Below, Tom tells us about his role in ICS and a little more about himself, including how he challenges himself outside of work.
What is your role in ICS. What type of projects do you work on?
I’m a Senior Process Development engineer. ICS support many different projects in different ways including development, prototyping and small volume manufacturing (Pilot) for design verification, clinical trials etc. On other projects as our customers progress through development their lifecycle we support them in commercialisation where we look to optimise, validate and scale the manufacuting production lines to support their commercial requirements. My role involves optimizing processes e.g. getting the new 10-up VHS to meet additional capacity and mapping out the validation process for the different components, test methods and processes. Part of my remit also involves helping develop the A3 problem solving process in ICS and implementing best practices.
Can you tell us about an interesting or challenging project you have worked on since joining ICS?
We’re working on the development of a delivery device for an implant. It’s been a hugely challenging project with plenty of technical obstacles. Through close collaboration with the customer, we’ve improved yields and got more consistency in our outputs so we can validate them. As we enter the validation phase of the project it’s a busy time, but we have a clear line of sight to where we want to go.
How did you find yourself in this role?
I’ve spent most of my career working in medical devices in a variety of engineering roles. From working in Galway, I had become aware of ICS when the new facility was being built and knew how fast ICS were growing. I saw the open role and things went from there. This role struck me as a great career opportunity and a chance to use my skill set to really make an impact.
What do you like about working at ICS?
ICS stands out as having a very driven talented workforce who never accept failure whether that’s product builders or support staff. I’ve been impressed by the skill sets of the different people working on the project at all levels. There’s a large amount of variety on the role allowing you to get hands on when required. It’s also great that there’s a path for career progression for staff members.
Outside of work, how do you like to spend your free time?
Outside of work and family, I’ve found running to be a great thing for my mental health. I have run 4 marathons including some big ones like Berlin and New York. New York last year was a highlight. With 55,000 participants and 2 million spectators it was the biggest marathon in history!
– Tom running the New York Marathon in 2024