Thinking on Afroleft

2020: PPE, Modular Construction & A Weimaraner Puppy

Thu, 24 Dec 2020 19:59:28 +0000

At the start of the year I had to pull together a little software engineering team to kickstart building out the technology responsible for handing off design, controlling quality and running manufacturing operations at Ideal Modular Homes. I was lucky enough to convince the brilliant mind of Duncan Nisbet, the unstoppable Andy Tango and Chris Moorst of Kitsune fame to come onboard.
We learned a lot about modular construction and sustainable materials in construction.

25,000+ Protective Visors for Healthcare Workers

As covid19 began to bite in Northern Europe, lockdown happened. Central Manchester was baron link
In March we were facing a big shortage of personal protective equipment (PPE). I kicked off a thread on Twitter (link) that sparked a lot of conversation about how the indie-maker community in the North West could assist healthcare by making PPE.
2 months / 40 + volunteers / 1 handcrafted ordering and dispatch system / £20,000 in donations later, we had produced, sanitised, packed and distributed well over 25,000 protective visors to healthcare workers right across the UK.
People processed orders, printed instructions, volunteered to produce, worked their asses off and donated generously from far and wide to help us bring this to life.

Yours truly doing my best to hide my west country accent live on Heart Radio link
Liverpool Echo interview link
The website visors.doesliverpool.com

This & That #21

In the summer I produced a new mix.

What’s next?

Sat, 03 Aug 2013 20:30:00 +0000

When we hit the bottom of your web page, what do you want us to do? Where should we go next? What are other people saying about this service? Should we get in touch with your team or look at the tech specs for this ground-breaking new product?

Too many websites fail to answer these simple questions.

Think about it: It’s a bit like visiting a supermarket with aisles that lead to dead ends. You either walk all the way back up the aisle, or you loose interest altogether and are forced to use the fire exit.

Bootstrapping vs. Barry

Thu, 18 Jul 2013 20:23:00 +0000

A few months ago I was asked by Sage to be one of their business experts. Thinking that sounded a bit like something from The Office, I asked what the role would involve.

The team explained that I’d be rolling my sleeves up and helping the business community by sharing my understanding of the web, design, marketing and business in general. I welcomed the opportunity.

Last week they published my first post:

“How Barry raised investment, risked everything and faced bankruptcy before turning his company into a multi-million pound operation…”

This Is Water

Sun, 19 May 2013 20:18:00 +0000

In 2005, author David Foster Wallace was asked to give the commencement address to the 2005 graduating class of Kenyon College. However, the resulting speech didn’t become widely known until 3 years later, after his tragic death. It is, without a doubt, some of the best life advice we’ve ever come across, and perhaps the most simple and elegant explanation of the real value of education.

The Fallacy of the Fall Over Count

Fri, 12 Apr 2013 19:35:00 +0000

The trick with learning to ski is to start off steady. Making pizza shapes with your skis helps to regulate a comfortable speed for gently coasting down the green slopes.

Of course, quickly you become better at this and you begin measuring progress against the amount of times you fall over.

Two times down the green run without falling over - you’re winning.

Quickly you realise this is a fallacy. You’re not making progress because you’re not pushing yourself.

5 Years Late

Tue, 24 Apr 2012 18:51:00 +0000

With a pile of books and a text editor, around five years ago I started my journey into the world wide web. Since then, I’ve managed to make myself a little place to work and have recently co-founded a place for connecting and sharing with other, like-minded dance music fanatics.

I’ve worked with a bunch of big companies, small companies, good people, bad people, interesting projects and not-so interesting projects, but something has been missing all the way through my little journey. This something has been pushed to the bottom of my to-do pile with the same disregard as my end of year tax return. What you ask?