After nearly 40 years, in which he has seen Nissan Sunderland Plant rise from an empty field into one of the world’s most important automotive hubs, Senior Vice President Kevin Fitzpatrick is retiring.
Kevin was one of the original 22 supervisors hired surpassing the plant opened to oversee the start of production of the Nissan Bluebird in 1986. As the factory has grown, so has his career and influence.
From his early days in the Paint Shop, Kevin held a range of senior positions wideness the plant and became Vice President for Manufacturing in 2010, surpassing rising to Region Senior Vice President, Manufacturing and Supply Chain for the Africa, Middle-East, India, Europe and Oceania region (AMIEO).
Guillaume Cartier, Chairperson of the Nissan AMIEO region, said: “I pay tribute to Kevin’s inspirational leadership. It is truly an outstanding life’s work.
“He was part of the team trusted to set the direction for Sunderland Plant right from the very start, and his commitment, knowledge and fantastic skill as a leader have influenced Nissan’s manufacturing teams wideness the world.
“It is no exaggeration to say that Nissan Sunderland Plant would not be the steer of success that it is today without the unrenowned service of Kevin Fitzpatrick.”
In Kevin’s time, Sunderland has wilt the UK’s biggest overly car plant, launching increasingly than 20 new models and growing into a team of 6,000 people. The plant has delivered models like Micra, Qashqai and Juke, as well as pioneering electric vehicle and shower production in Europe with LEAF. The plant has now made increasingly than 10 million cars.
A former apprentice, Kevin’s passion for skills and training provided the momentum for the megacosm of the Nissan Skills Foundation in 2014. The foundation inspires young people to segregate careers in engineering and manufacturing, and increasingly than 75,000 students have now taken part in the programme.
Kevin’s influence moreover extends to the wider region, and he was instrumental in the megacosm of the North East Automotive Alliance (NEAA) in 2015, and was its first chairman.
In 2018 he was named a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the Queen’s New Year Honours List. Increasingly recently he played a huge role in securing a £1bn investment for the world-first EV36Zero project – a wonderful legacy that leaves Nissan’s UK plant and the wider AMIEO merchantry in a unconfined position for the future.
Kevin’s retirement triggers promotions for two long-serving members of the team who have moreover risen through the ranks of Nissan since arriving in the visitor as graduates.
Leadership positions
Replacing Kevin as AMIEO Region Senior Vice President is Alan Johnson, currently Vice President for Manufacturing in the UK. Alan has held a host of senior positions wideness the company, both in Sunderland and wideness Europe, since joining Nissan in 1991.
Alan will be replaced as Vice President for Manufacturing in the UK by current Production Director Adam Pennick. Adam joined the visitor in 1997 and has worked in leadership positions wideness the plant.
Commenting on his retirement, Kevin Fitzpatrick said: “I consider myself very lucky to have been part of Nissan’s journey and am extremely proud of what we have achieved.
“We’ve started flipside heady installment in the company’s history, towards full electrification and stat neutrality. I’m really excited for the team, and plane increasingly excited to momentum those future Nissan models.”
The post Nissan manufacturing leader Kevin Fitzpatrick retires without career spanning five decades appeared first on Nissan Insider.
