Interview John Plummer for the 20th anniversary of BeaconMedaes
For the special occasion of our 20th anniversary, we asked John Plummer, a ‘Medaes’ colleague to do an interview about the past 20 years.
John Plummer started in 1977 as Pipeline Design Engineer at 'Medaes', before the time Beacon and Medaes merged to BeaconMedaes.
What initially attracted you to join our company, and how has the company's mission or culture evolved over the years?
Working on the design of international hospital projects and the possibility of travelling was the main draw for applying. It soon became obvious that it was a great sector to be part of. Our equipment could be seen as helping to improve healthcare outcomes for all, particularly in the developing countries we were involved in.
The culture within BeaconMedaes has always felt the same: friendly and like an extended family with our colleagues in the US and other areas, whom I have been involved with as part of my role(s) for many years.
Can you share some of the most significant changes or milestones you've witnessed during your two decades with the company, and how did this impact your role and the organization as a whole?
The biggest change has been technology, which has changed greatly over the last twenty years & massively over more than forty years. This has changed how we could do business and allowed us to be involved in more projects and more countries where we previously had no presence.
Another significant change was having access to the network of Atlas Copco customer centers and later the development of our local teams. This gave us better knowledge and understanding of the local area and projects, allowing us to further grow the business.
My role changed from working directly with our distributors, to supporting our own local teams & customer centers and support & train these people.
Reflecting on your long tenure here, could you highlight some of your proudest achievements or contributions to the company's success?
The medical gas industry became increasingly more competitive over the years. Keeping our name at the forefront in our markets as the 'go to company' with the best products, as well as being considered the expert in medical gases by our distributor’s, consultants, and other entities in my regions, has been very rewarding.
The culture within BeaconMedaes has always felt the same: friendly and like an extended family with our colleagues in the US and other areas, whom I have been involved with as part of my roles for many years.
In the ever-evolving landscape of healthcare, what are some key challenges you've encountered over the years, and how have you and your team adapted to address them while maintaining a high standard of patient care?
Technology has changed in the sense that everything needs to be available right away and also responses are expected much quicker. Additional local support within our distributor organization and later with our own local support has enabled us to keep on top of this change in expectations.
Also, being able to adapt our product offering to meet local requirements with a mix of HTM, NFPA & ISO equipment in some markets has been an advantage whilst still maintaining high standards.
Throughout your 20 years, you must have worked with various teams and colleagues. Can you share some memorable experiences or collaborations that have had a lasting impact on you and the company's growth?
Everything we do relies on team effort, whether that be: our support from here, our distributors, local support, or our colleagues from the US. However, personally satisfying has been being involved in the design of some of the region’s largest and most prestigious projects, this opens the door to more opportunities and successes.
For a short time, I was responsible for Malaysia and ensuring that a certain distributor became our nr. 1 distributor in terms of revenue was a highlight and very rewarding.
Another memorable experience was: we did a weeklong training for all relevant staff in a private hospital in Bahrain which made the local newspaper and was featured on the local news in Manama, the capital of Bahrain.
