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NIGEL KUSCHER - MANAGING DIRECTOR
Nigel started Ref-Sol in 2007 with his business partner Louise Lowe, which began with just him in a Van.
Nigel started out as an Air Conditioning Engineer and has been in the industry for nearly 30 years in a wide variety of roles including Service and Installation Engineer of Refrigeration and Air Conditioning systems, Commissioning Engineer, Service Manager & Director, Design and Project Manager, Account Manager and Regional Manager.
He now employs over 60 people, although he still enjoys getting his hands dirty on site!
Things you may not know about Nigel:
- Nigel first trained as a farrier and gained a diploma in farriery but quickly had to give it up as he was told he was too tall and had back problems.
- With a good knowledge of engineering, Nigel turned his attentions to being a car, lorry & plant machinery mechanic, where he found his passion for cars.
- After being made redundant from a job in the motor trade he was offered a job as an air conditioning engineer where his skillset was easily adapted to the refrigeration industry.
- His favourite car of all time is Land Rover Defender 90. In his spare time Nigel enjoys driving fast cars & watching most types of motor sport.
- You will often find him in the countryside, he enjoys clay pigeon shooting & serves as a game keeper in his spare time, he also enjoys training & working his labrador.
- Nigel first trained as a farrier and gained a diploma in farriery but quickly had to give it up as he was told he was too tall and had back problems.
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NICK MCCRACKEN - OPERATIONS DIRECTOR
Nick joined Ref-Sol in 2016 as the Operations Director.
From site relationships to technical assistance and project management, Nick brings a wide range of knowledge to the table, which he has brought and learned from his 35 years of dedication to the industry.
Things you may not know about Nick:
- 35 years ago, Nick first started out as an apprentice refrigeration engineer.
- Fun fact about Nick – he has scored a try at Twickenham!
- His hobbies include, cycling, walking & he is thinking about taking up golf!
- In his spare time Nick enjoys travelling and spending quality time with his family.
- Nick's future goal is to continue to grow with the company where he can continue to learn, take on additional responsibilities, contribute and bring as much value as he can.
- His dream is to remain healthy and enjoy the fruits of what hard work brings!
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LOUISE LOWE - FINANCE DIRECTOR
Louise started Ref-Sol in 2007 with her business partner Nigel Kuscher
“I remember sitting in my kitchen, getting drunk and us coming up with the Company name, it was a very exciting time!”
In the early days Nigel and Louise used to do Planned Maintenances together with “Henry the Hoover” cleaning air conditioning units at local businesses, we looked a very unlikely partnership!
As the business progressed, Louise spent more time in the office overseeing the day-to-day admin processes, sending engineers their daily jobs and processing all paperwork, and naturally progressed to the Finance Director position.
The Office has now grown to over 20 staff with varying roles within the business to ensure a high level of Service is delivered to our Customers.
Louise now has over 20 years’ experience within the Refrigeration and Air conditioning industry.
Things you may not know about Louise:
- Louise is a massive petrol head! She loves Formula 1 & all things supercars!
- Louise’s dream when she retires is to travel the world as much as she can!
- In her spare time Louise enjoys watching football, cars & motor sport, travelling & spending time with her family.
- Her first job was at Jesters Nightclub in the Delicatessen.
- When asked what her dream car was, she answered with “every supercar you can think of”
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EMMA GRAINGER - OPERATIONS MANAGER
Emma started working for Ref-Sol in 2016 and was originally employed as an Air Conditioning Administrator, she soon progressed to Head of Department, Office Manager & then to her current position in operations.
She has over 8 years of experience within the industry. Her love & passion for the company is what has driven her to continue to progress within management. Emma brings fresh ideas to the company including the recent rebranding. She brings humour to the office, and it is important to her that her staff have fun and enjoy coming to work.
Things you may not know about Emma:
- Emma originally started out in the hair & beauty industry achieving a diploma.
- In her spare time if she is not travelling, you will often find her in the countryside, working & training her dogs.
- Her dream is to travel the world and to buy a holiday home abroad.
- She loves socialising with her friends and family & is the proud Mom of doberman Max.
- Her goal is to continue to progress in the company, bringing fresh ideas to the table and working with the team to continue the progression of Ref-Sol.
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CHRISTINA AMOND - OFFICE MANAGER
Christina aka ‘Tee’ joined Ref-Sol in 2018 starting on our Spare quotes department. Not long after she was promoted to Head of Department.
She has always been dedicated and passionate about her job and has now taken the position of Office Manager.
Things you may not know about Christina:
- Christina’s first job was working at a memorial ball charity event in Weston Super-Mare, looking after celebrity guests such as Theo Paphitis (from Dragons Den). This event raised nearly half a million pound for charity in 2023!
- Christina was originally trained as care staff with the view to go into nursing and eventually midwifery.
- Her future dream / goal is to have a happy & prosperous life & household.
- In her spare time, she enjoys making memories with their family, but especially her Fur babies.
- Christina's hobbies include picturesque dog walks and camping. She also enjoys creating new recipes in the kitchen that she has found on Tik Tok!
- Interesting fact about Christina, is she is currently restoring & building a campervan by herself!
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LAUREN ROSSI - FINANCIAL CONTROLLER
Lauren first started work at Ref-Sol back in 2012 and headed a small administration team as Office Manager. Ten years of hard work and determination helped lay the foundations for the processes and standards Ref-Sol still adopt today.
During 2022 Lauren took up a new challenge and position within the Ref-Sol Accounts Department as Company Financial Controller.
Things you may not know about Lauren:
- Lauren started out on her career path at a facilities management company where she worked within the service team. During her 6 years at the company, she gained several promotions to conclude as Helpdesk Manager.
- Laurens goals and aspirations are to advance her finance and business management skills, help promote and support the continued successes of Ref-Sol.
- Lauren loves being outdoors and one of her main hobbies is gardening. She also has a passion for netball, which she has played from a young age. Lauren has been with her current Netball team for 16 years and trains and plays a competitive game every week.
- You will find most of Lauren's spare time spent with her husband and two young children in their loving home which they share with a cat and tortoise. She also loves to travel with her family and hopes to visit as many different countries as she can.
- When asked for an interesting fact about herself Lauren said “I once swam in the ocean with Manta rays off the coast of Lembongan Island in Bali, one of them was easily 20ft wide and swam directly underneath me and skimmed my legs, it was an awesome experience”.
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DARREN CHAMPION - AIR CONDITIONING SERVICE MANAGER
Darren joined Ref-Sol in 2015. He brings a wealth of experience to the company from his 37 years working in the industry.
From technical assistance, site relationships to picking up the tools, Darren is very dedicated to his job and loves a challenge, no problem is too big for him to solve!
Things you may not know about Darren:
- Darren was originally trained as an electrician; his first job was an electrical apprentice.
- At the age of 19 after Darren completed his electrical qualification, he embarked on a career in Air Conditioning, he attended Garrets Green & Solihull Technical Colleges to achieve his qualifications.
- Darren's hobbies include,walking,cycling & racket ball
- Darren's future dream and goal is to see his now grown-up children happy & to see more of the world in retirement!
- Darren's guilty pleasure is black country brewed Batham’s Bitter!
- In his spare time, he enjoys travelling,spending time with his fiancée & family, and walking his dogs.
- Interesting Fact about Darren: he Climbed to the top of Ben Nevis for his 50th birthday, he is already planning a cycling challenge for his 60th!
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ANDY DUKES - AIR CONDITIONING SERVICE MANAGER
Andy joined Ref-Sol in 2016 as an Air Conditioning Engineer. With his 32 years of technical expertise, he quickly brought a lot of skill on the road and into the office. Andy soon progressed into a Service Manager, offering high quality training and technical support throughout the company.
Andy is still very hands on, and you will often find him on site.
Things you may not know about Andy:
- Andy was originally trained as an electrician.
- His first job was working for a white goods company contracted to whirlpool appliances, here he repaired the fridge freezers.
- His future / dream goal is to move to the south coast!
- In his spare time Andy enjoys house renovations and camping with his family.
- Andy’s hobbies include walking / hiking at weekends, and surfing.
- Interesting Fact about Andy, he is currently building his 4th VW camper van!
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ALAN HUNTER - NATIONAL ACCOUNTS MANAGER
Alan joined Ref-Sol in 2014 as the National Accounts Manager. Alan has been in the industry for over 30 years, from starting out as an Engineer Controller and working up to the position he is in today, he brings a range of knowledge and experience.
He is based in the office as well as on the road, travelling up and down the country ensuring site satisfaction.
Things you may not know about Alan:
- Alan's first job was working as a controller for a refrigeration company.
- Alan achieved 12 O Levels & 4 A Levels at college, he went straight from college into the refrigeration industry.
- Alan is dedicated to the industry & hopes to see out the industry into retirement.
- In his spare time Alan enjoys walking his dogs and relaxing at his holiday home in Yorkshire.
- Alan enjoys gardening and spending time with his family. Alan has a sit on lawn mower & it takes him all day to mow his 1.5 acres!
- Alan's dream car is a DeLorean (The back to the future car!)
Meet Ref-Sol's Four-Legged Friends
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MAX - RETIRED
Max started with the company in 2016 alongside his Mum Emma. He would regularly pop into the office to make sure everyone had left him some of their lunch.
He had a big heart and brought a lot of happiness & laughter into the office. He enjoyed sleeping in the middle of the office floor to ensure he got all of the attention, always with one eye open looking for anyone with a treat.
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BO - PART-TIME
Bo started the company at 8 weeks old in 2023. He is still in training & comes into the office a couple of times a week.
You can often find him blowing bubbles into his water bowl and doing zoomies around the office.
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RALPH - RETIRED
Ralph started with the company in 2017, he would often come into work with his dad to check everything was running smoothly.
It was always a busy day in the office for Ralph as he enjoyed curling up under his Dad’s desk for a snooze and wouldn’t wake up until it was time to go home!