I’ve always worked and while my health is good I have no plans to retire yet

I’ve always worked and while my health is good I have no plans to retire yet

5 August 2015

ROBERT Bradford will celebrate 50 years’ service with Ballynahinch firm Nitronica next week.

The Aughlisnafin man began his working career at the Antrim Road plant on August 16, 1965, when Harold Wilson was Prime Minister, a pint of milk cost 4p and Sonny and Cher were topping the charts with I Got You Babe.

A special presentation ceremony to mark Robert’s five decades with the company which operated under the Plessey banner when he started work in 1965, takes places on Friday of next week.

The Aughlisnafin man admits his 50 years with the Antrim Road plant have ‘flown by’ and he has no plans to retire just yet. He says he loves his job and greatly values the friendships he has established with his colleagues over many years.

“This is a great place to work,” he said. “You could say the people I work with are part of my extended family and I don’t feel I have been here for five decades. I love my job and while my role with the company has changed over the years, the challenge that has presented has been something I have responded to.”

Robert, who works as a system manager at the Antrim Road plant, described the technological advantages since he walked through the door as a fresh faced 16 year-old as “incredible.”

He continued: “When I started my career, Plessey was manufacturing equipment used to control looms operated by the famous Mackies company at its plants all over the world. In the 1970s the focus was on producing telecommunications equipment and today of course we live in a world dominated by high speed internet and computers.

“I really enjoy what I do, in particular, the challenge of adapting to change over the years. From starting off in electronics I am now responsible for all the computers at the plant. In the early days I would be fixing a fork lift truck one minute and the radio on the shop floor the next.”

Robert said when he sees grandchildren of people he has worked with over the years it brings home to him the amount of time he has spent at the Ballynahinch plant where he is now the longest serving member of staff.

“I have always been very busy and found my job very interesting. I have also been fortunate over the years to have worked in England and Scotland with the firm to help out and this was something I enjoyed,” he continued.

When Robert started his working career, the Antrim Road plant was operated by Plessey and since then there have been a number of signs at the entrance gate including GPT, RealTech, Marconi, Viasystems and now Nitronica.

During his 50 years, he believes he has worked with several thousand people and suggests what keeps him young is his work and the fact he enjoys life.

Having just solved a glitch in Nitronica’s internet connection before he spoke to the Recorder,  Robert described his job as a challenge in a good way, explaining “every day is different.”

He added: “I firmly believe that work keeps you young. I have worked all my life and as long as my health is good I have no plans to retire just yet. I think I would find it hard to get up in the morning if I had nothing to do.

“Enjoying your work is important. My work here has always been interesting and every day really does bring something new. When you get to my vintage and see people you have worked with over the years passing on it is a bit scary. Right now, I am enjoying work and I firmly believe that is what helps keeps you young.”