FIRA International has confirmed some new appointments across various teams including testing, ergonomics and furniture aftercare.

The ergonomics team has been bolstered through the appointment of Claire Clark as ergonomist. Claire will be supporting clients in all aspects of ergonomics from design to final product, alongside being focussed on assessing the ergonomic excellence of contract and domestic products. A BA (Hons) in 3D Design and Digital Modelling and an MSc in Ergonomics (Human Factors) from Loughborough University has led Claire to a particular interest in ergonomics in schools.

Another addition to the ergonomics team is Alice Wardle, who has joined FIRA International on a 12 month work placement as part of her Ergonomics (Human Factors Design) degree course at Loughborough University. Alice will be supported during her placement as she gets first-hand experience across the full spectrum of ergonomic services FIRA provide including advisory and testing services; product user trials; furniture specification, development and evaluation; risk assessments; standards testing and dimensional testing; health & Safety and DSE regulations assessments and workplace Equalities Act assessments.

Emma Underhay has joined the furniture testing team as Sales Coordinator, providing maternity cover. Emma is FIRA’s first point of call for incoming testing enquiries, advising callers on options available to meet their specific needs; and which tests will meet particular British or European standards.

Due to expansion the FIRA Service Technician’s division has made a number of appointments. Four new Service Technicians have joined the wider team of over 90 furniture repair experts based across the country who work on behalf of many of the UK’s leading retailers and manufacturers who rely on the technicians to inspect and repair customers’ furniture when either damaged or faulty. 

Karl Moore recently joined FIRA as Technician Supervisor. Working with the supervisor team, overseeing the network of Service Technicians, Karl’s primary role is to ensure high standards are maintained across customer service, furniture repair and damage/fault inspection.

Eight Warehouse Technicians have also joined the Service Technicians team. Their primary role is quality control on behalf of large retailers by inspecting returned items of furniture, with the aim of identifying potential production defects to protect consumers and minimise potential customer complaints.

Five office based roles have also been recruited within the FIRA Service Technicians call centre based in Stevenage. Their role is to support consumers, and customers of retailers, with booking repair and inspection visits, and advising on the outcome of inspections.

Speaking on the new hires Phil Reynolds, General Manager at FIRA International, said “it’s great to welcome so many new faces to our FIRA International team. To enable us to realise our growth plans it’s vital we have the right talent in place. Our new colleagues all bring different skills to the organisation, and put us in a stronger position to support our clients, consumers and wider furniture industry.”

Additional career opportunities with FIRA International will be posted on https://careers.exova.com/search-careers/, this portal also allows those with furniture experience to send in their CV if they have an interest in working for the organisation in either a testing, consultancy or aftercare role.