Paul Dunphy of BMS highlights the most important skills for working as a pharmaceutical engineer.
Co-working and cross-team collaboration is key at pharma firm Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMS) – whether you’re in a graduate role or in financial services.
That’s something we spoke to Paul Dunphy, the company’s associate director for asset management and engineering reliability, about when we recently visited BMS’s Cruiserath site in Dublin 15.
‘It’s very rewarding and motivating to work in pharma engineering and know that our efforts are helping patients in need’
– PAUL DUNPHY
Dunphy told us about his lifelong aspiration to work in the area of pharma engineering, and now that he has achieved that goal, he described it as a rewarding and energising career.
“It has been a huge privilege to work in this environment and know that our work is helping patients,” he said.
“I suppose we all have colleagues, relations, families who may be struggling with illness, and it’s very rewarding and energising and motivating to work in pharma engineering and know that our efforts are helping patients in need.”
In fact, the best part of Dunphy’s day, he told us, is the knowledge that his team’s work is helping to create medicines for patients in need. “Everybody’s input and effort goes towards helping patients ultimately recover or maintain their condition,” he added.
Pharma engineering needs problem-solvers
According to Dunphy, it’s crucial that pharma engineers have a “desire to solve problems”. They must also be able to collaborate across different types of teams.
Seeking out such types of people has so far enabled BMS to cultivate a positive working culture, he explained.
“It’s excellent and it’s something that BMS worked very hard at to try and create the right culture for people to work in,” he said.
“So there’s a very strong emphasis on behaviours across the site, which really promotes the right environment and conditions for pharma engineers – and indeed everyone working at the site – to give their best towards manufacturing our medicines to help patients in need.”
