By Richard Dodd, Senior Field Application Specialist

When I studied Biochemistry at Cardiff University, I knew I wanted to put what I was learning into practice. I’d always been fascinated by biochemistry, the chemistry of living things, because it brought together the two areas of science I loved most: biology and chemistry. So, when I entered the biotech and pharmaceutical industry in 1994, I wanted to work in the lab and contribute to something that could have a genuine impact on people’s lives. My early roles in plasma protein purification gave me exactly that.

It quickly became clear that the work we were doing could have a huge health benefit. Knowing that the products we were helping to produce could become life-saving medicines was incredibly motivating - I was hooked. More than three decades later, that connection to patients is still what brings me back to why we do what we do.

From the lab to supporting customers

Today, I’m a Field Applications Specialist, a role that feels like a natural progression from my previous experience across analytical science, project management and customer relations, as well as many years working with chromatography and protein purification.

If I’m explaining what I do to someone outside the industry, I keep it simple: we make products that biotech and pharmaceutical companies use to make therapeutic drugs.

In practice, my day-to-day role is all about helping customers use those products successfully. I work closely with our Sales team to provide technical support, whether that’s through virtual meetings, face-to-face conversations, site visits or answering technical questions. I also collaborate with teams across the business, including R&D, Marketing, Product Management, QA, QC, Production, Technology Transfer and Logistics.

That variety is one of the things I enjoy most about my job. Every conversation brings a slightly different problem, perspective or opportunity to learn, and after 32 years in the industry, I’m still learning.

Purification is rarely plug and play

If there is one thing experience has taught me, it’s that chromatography is rarely straightforward. There can be an assumption that purification is almost “plug and play”: choose the appropriate resin, follow the process and get the expected result. In reality, there is nearly always optimisation to do, and every type of resin has its own idiosyncrasies.

I’ve worked on plenty of projects where the resin and conditions you expect to win the day simply don’t. Then an idea comes completely out of left field and solves the problem. Those experiences are a good reminder not to become too attached to the answer you expect to find.

Every process is different; every customer is different. Sharing information and learning to ask the right questions can be just as important as having the technical knowledge to answer them - perseverance helps too.

Experience doesn't mean having all the answers

Something slightly unexpected has happened as I’ve become more experienced - rather than feeling that I should rely more heavily on my own knowledge, I find myself wanting to rely more on my colleagues.

There is an enormous amount of knowledge and experience across the teams I work with. Bringing those different perspectives together helps you understand what matters to the bigger picture, rather than looking at a problem solely from your own area of expertise. When the scope and timeline of a project are clear, that multidisciplinary experience can make collaboration feel very natural, the difficult part is making sure those channels stay open when workloads increase and time becomes tight.

For me, good collaboration under pressure means taking a moment, sharing the information and experience available to us, making decisions as a team and then being accountable for those decisions. Sometimes slowing down enough to bring the right people into the conversation is what allows you to move forward faster.

Building relationships that last

Of all the things I’ve worked on during my career, it’s difficult to pick one project that makes me proudest. What stands out instead are the relationships - I’ve worked with many different customers over the past 32 years, and building relationships that continue over time is one of the most rewarding aspects of the job.

Technical support isn’t simply about providing an answer to a question. Often, it’s about understanding what somebody is really trying to achieve, sharing what you know and working through the problem together. Some of the technical questions that land on my desk can be particularly challenging. There isn’t always an immediate answer, but when you work through one of those challenges and reach a positive outcome for the customer, it’s hugely satisfying. And when a solution comes from somebody else’s insight, recognising that contribution matters too.

Credit where it is due, the COVID-19 pandemic reinforced something I’d already seen throughout my career: science is full of intelligent, driven people who genuinely want to help one another. When that collective effort works and a problem is solved, celebrating the result together can be very special.

Keeping sight of the patient

Purification projects can involve all sorts of challenges. There is product efficacy and safety to consider, but also cost of goods, process feasibility and the practical realities of turning a scientific idea into something that works.

Working across different projects gives you a much more rounded view of those challenges, but ultimately, I think it always comes back to the good the work can do for patients. Knowing that products our company has produced have been used in the manufacture of life-saving medicines for millions of patients gives you a real buzz. It puts the difficult questions, long projects and troubleshooting into context.

People outside the industry don't always see the amount of work that goes into getting these things right, or the dedication of the people behind them - I see that dedication every day.

Learning in both directions

One of the things that keeps me motivated after so many years in the industry is knowing there is always something new to discover. I enjoy being able to share the experience I’ve accumulated with more junior colleagues. Having been around for a while, there are situations where I can offer a perspective that comes from having encountered similar challenges before, but that exchange goes both ways - I learn from my younger colleagues every day. New people bring different perspectives, questions and ideas, just as new technologies continually change what is possible within our industry.

That is why, if I could give one piece of advice to somebody beginning their career in this space, it would be to experience as many aspects of the industry as you can. Learn from everyone, have a voice, be curious about perspectives beyond your own and, most of all, enjoy what you do.

After more than three decades working in this industry, I’ve learned a lot about chromatography and protein purification, but perhaps the most important lesson has been that experience isn’t about reaching a point where you have all the answers, it’s about knowing which questions to ask, who to bring into the conversation and being willing to keep learning from the people around you.