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About Us

OpexDrive Leadership Team

Colin Barr

Colin is the creator of OpexDrive. He is a highly experienced and successful executive providing business improvement services to an international client base. Colin previously held director level positions within blue chip organisations. He has a particular emphasis on process improvement and in driving business excellence.

He has a successful track record for the programme management of major initiatives and systems implementation. Colin has gained significant exposure to taking a senior leadership role in defining, implementing, and renewing change and improvement programmes within organizations.

About Colin Barr & Opex Drive

1975-79

Strathclyde University

Colin gains a BSc. (Hons) in Physics having won a Carnegie Research Scholarship Prize

1975-79

1979-81

Burroughs Machines

Joins Burroughs as a Technology Development Engineer at their Wafer Scale Integration programme  in Cumbernauld, Scotland.

1979-81

1981-88

Motorola Semiconductors

Colin had various roles at Motorola in East Kilbride and became the Wafer Fabrication Quality Manager for the two factories (MOS 1 and MOS 9)

1981-88

1988-95

Digital Equipment Corp (DEC)

Colin started off at DEC’s plant at Ayr as the Quality & Reliability Engineering Manager.  Over a number of years he held different roles in Business Excellence, quality and reliability programmes, eventually becoming the Site Quality and Reliability Manager at DEC’s new plant at South Queensferry

1988-95

1995-2001

Motorola

Colin returned to Motorola in 1995 to become the Director of Quality, Business Excellence and Customer Satisfaction at Motorola’s plant at Easter Inch, Bathgate, Scotland.

1995-2001

2001-Present

Colin Barr Associates

Following his departure from Motorola in 2001 Colin started up his own Consultancy Business specialising in Lean & Six Sigma methodologies but encompassing a host of improvement tools
and techniques focused on leading significant change, reducing costs, and improving business
performance

2001-Present

2015

OpexDrive Initial ideas

Having worked with literally hundreds of clients in Continuous Improvement and Lean & Six Sigma it became clear to Colin that there was a need to control and manage all the various organisation wide initiatives that were underway. 

The idea for OpexDrive was born from this.

2015

2018

OpexDrive Launch

Having written and tested the OpexDrive system  in real customer situations, OpexDrive was launched in 2018 and is now in use across a number of companies.

2018

Some of our featured clients

  • Rockwell Solutions
  • Standard Life
  • Scottish Enterprise
  • Highland Spring
  • North British Distillers
  • Argenta Global
  • North Ayrshire Council
  • Prudential
  • Highland Council
  • Babcock International
  • Scottish Power
  • Inverness Hospice
  • Edinburgh Airport
  • Jabil
  • Harbro
  • Sartorius Stedim
  • Wood Group
  • Cabinet Office UK
  • John Dewar & Sons
  • Novar
  • SPH Housing
  • North West Employers
  • Student Loans Company
  • C.M.P.S.
  • The Edrington Group
  • Ministry of Defence
  • Aker
  • Santander
  • The Work Foundation
  • Bespak
  • Gent, Honeywell
  • Brand Rex
  • New Medical Technology
  • Harper Collins
  • Atmel
  • Robbins & Myers UK Ltd
  • Macdonalds Engineering
  • Schlumberger
  • Wallace Camerons
  • Hydrasun
  • Petrofac
  • Macmillan Cancer Trust
  • Sandvik
  • Methode Electronics
  • Renfrewshire Council
  • Helena Homes
  • William Grant & Sons
  • Quality Scotland
  • Castle Systems
  • Mathiesons
  • QAS Copak
  • Compugraphics
  • Smith Anderson
  • A.A.M.
  • John McGavigan Ltd
  • Bon Accord Care
  • NHS
  • Central Pharma
  • United Closures UCP
  • Mathiesons
  • BAE Systems
  • North British Distillery
  • Sense Scotland
  • Loch Fyne Oysters
  • API Foils
  • Raytheon
  • Kelvin Hughes
  • Metalysis
  • Vernacare
  • Macphie of Glenbervie
  • Global Energy (Inverness)
  • Land Energy (Girvin)
  • Cascade Technologies
  • Scottish Leather Group
  • Silberline
  • Caledonian Produce
  • SIMs
  • Albion Automotive
  • Optos
  • Capita
  • Johnstons of Elgin
  • Glasgow Caledonian University
  • MESL
  • Oceaneering
  • University of St Andrews
  • Tepnel Hologic
  • Synergie
  • Robbins & Myers UK Ltd
  • GA Engineering
  • Packard Bell
  • BioReliance
  • Lifetech – Invitrogen
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