‘Farm machinery mechanics taught me about people as well as engineering’

BMS’s Tom Shortt discusses the early factors that influenced his career and led to his role as an engineering director.

An engineering director at Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS), Tom Shortt has been with the organisation for more than nine years, but his passion for engineering began much earlier.

Shortt told SiliconRepublic.com, “While still in secondary school in Tipperary, I worked part‑time as a farm machinery mechanic, travelling across the county to diagnose faults, rebuild engines and restore agricultural equipment to service.” 

He explained that the experience cemented within him a technical curiosity and an appreciation for practical problem‑solving in real‑world conditions, making a future in mechanical engineering the clear choice.

He added, “That role taught me as much about people as it did about engineering. Our customers ranged from large agricultural contractors to elderly farmers working in isolation.

“Understanding their challenges, listening carefully and earning trust were just as important as fixing the machinery.”

Could you tell us more about your role today and what is involved?

I lead a multidisciplinary engineering organisation that underpins the compliant and sustainable delivery of medicines to patients worldwide. My leadership approach is grounded in technical experience, operational discipline and a strong belief in the value of empowered teams. At the BMS Cruiserath Campus in Dublin, I lead an engineering function with a broad and critical remit. The team is responsible for facilities management, utilities operations, manufacturing and laboratory maintenance, capital project delivery, site master planning and validation activities.

In addition, the Cruiserath Campus engineering organisation provides facilities management oversight for two other BMS sites in Ireland.

To ensure consistency and visibility across this complexity, the engineering organisation operates within a robust governance framework. Tiered management processes and service provider governance forums provide structured oversight, clear escalation pathways and data‑driven performance management.

Tools such as A3 problem‑solving enable disciplined root‑cause analysis and effective resolution of issues.

While the engineering team does not directly manufacture BMS’s products, its impact on patient outcomes is significant. Engineering provides stable, high‑quality inputs that enable the value stream to operate predictably and compliantly, from reliable utilities and high‑purity water systems to safe engineering controls and dependable manufacturing and laboratory equipment.

When engineering systems perform as designed, the value stream has a much higher probability of producing consistent outputs that ultimately become medicines for patients. Every day, I feel grateful to have such a strong engineering team, where many of the day‑to‑day scheduling, resourcing or technical decisions are resolved close to the work with empowered teams. The escalations that do make it to the engineering leadership for direction are generally resolved quickly and with input from the relevant subject matter experts.

As a member of the Cruiserath Campus senior leadership team (SLT), I also play an active role beyond engineering. The SLT holds shared accountability for site performance and patient delivery, requiring close integration across operations, quality, supply chain, finance and human resources. Stepping into an SLT role broadened my perspective significantly. It reinforced the importance of enterprise thinking and governance in ensuring the site delivers safely, compliantly and sustainably.

Do you have a typical day and, if so, how does it look?

I guess it’s a cliché, but no two days are the same. The BMS engineering team is responsible for delivery of a wide scope of services, from facilities management to utilities operations, manufacturing and lab maintenance, capital project management, site master planning, and validation.

With that very broad range in scope, a variety of issues can arise, from breakdowns in manufacturing to developing proactive reliability strategies or hosting regulatory auditors.

What do you enjoy most about your job?

Among many proud moments at BMS, one stands out for me – the drug substance manufacturing shutdown in 2025. The programme involved critical first‑time maintenance, major project execution and an accelerated return to production. It was a significant technical and organisational challenge. Seeing it delivered so successfully reinforced the impact that a well‑coordinated, disciplined engineering effort can have across the entire site.

Another aspect of the role that brings me satisfaction is working to meet the challenge of decarbonisation. In collaboration with enterprise colleagues, the Cruiserath Campus has developed a comprehensive carbon-reduction roadmap, targeting approximately a 45pc reduction by 2033.

The Campus has already achieved zero waste to landfill and zero scope-2 emissions through renewable electricity procurement. Current engineering efforts therefore focus on scope-1 emissions, including decarbonising space heating and hot-water systems and eliminating inefficient steam usage. Looking further ahead, the demand for high-grade heat for clean steam and water for injection generation presents a more complex challenge. However, emerging technologies offer promising solutions.

I also find great fulfilment in supporting the evolution of the Cruiserath Campus. The site continues to evolve from its origins as an API facility to a drug substance biologics site and now toward becoming a fully end‑to‑end biologics campus, including sterile drug‑product filling and stability‑testing capabilities. This evolution positions the site to play a key role in launching new medicines for patients with unmet medical needs.

I am particularly excited about the potential of digital tools to accelerate data analysis, improve decision‑making and remove waste from engineering and operational processes. It feels like we’re only scratching the surface of what these tools will enable in the years ahead. The opportunity to combine strong engineering fundamentals with advanced data and analytics is incredibly exciting.

Don’t miss out on the knowledge you need to succeed. Sign up for the Daily Brief, Silicon Republic’s digest of need-to-know sci-tech news.