I've met plenty of characters in business over the last 30 years but there's one who is larger than life, whose name many people will recognise even if they can't put a detail to it and whose contribution to the local economy is only matched by that to the local community.
Today's focus is all about Mark Telford of Forth Engineering.
Top marks for those of you who guessed it and I may even have to start a raffle!
So, how would I describe Mark?
I started off with larger than life, I reckon I can easily add big-hearted, a brilliant business mind and probably as daft as a brush.
Put all of those together and you start to scratch the surface on a big-hearted guy.
Mark and his wife Nicola started Forth Engineering in 2000 as a bespoke engineering company helping to find solutions in the nuclear industry initially but since then, it seems to me that the only engineering capability they haven’t mastered is the space industry, but give it time!
By the time Mark ‘retired’ (and there are good reasons for the inverted commas) he had built Forth up from scratch to employing over 50 staff based in 4 locations: Maryport, Cleator Moor, Barrow and very soon they may be adding Malta to their list; yes Malta!
Just to add to that impressive 25 years, Forth also acquired Hallpack Engineering in 2025.
It's fitting at this point to describe Forth as a multi-award-winning company because that's exactly what they are.
In terms of wage packets, Mark has created a monster that puts millions into the Cumbrian economy every year and then there's the smaller businesses and suppliers that they support.
It's quite a remarkable achievement by any standards but when you spend 5 minutes with Mark, you realise that he has done this without needing anyone to pat him on the back or even to say well done.
He really is one of the most self-contained people I've ever met and we haven't even looked at his community contributions.
Mark was doing socio-economics before anyone knew what it all was.
Nowadays when companies get big contracts, especially in projects of national importance like Sellafield, they are required to have a socio-economic policy and that's perhaps as it should be, but I've got a fonder place in my wee business heart for the companies like Forth and Marchon before them, who never needed to be asked to help the community.
Whether it's supporting football at the grassroots and often underfunded level or lending a massive hand to charities like Goodlives in Cleator Moor, Forth through Mark's guidance have been there for the community at every level.
More recently, I was privileged to witness their community efforts in two totally unrelated events last December.
The first was the re-dedication of two First World War graves at St Mary's in Cleator when Mark responded to my plea in this newspaper for the community to attend if they could.
Mark rallied everyone he knew.
The second was their remarkable response to a local charity trying to give child carers a Christmas to remember.
Never mind the kids, I was overwhelmed by their efforts and in particular Ken Johnson one of Mark's team members at the time, and that if you like encapsulates Forth Engineering's success.
They have recruited and trained their staff to care and to give a damn, pardon my phrase.
So, back to the inverted commas about Mark being retired: pull the other one fella.
Mark will retire when the snow falls in August over Whitehaven Harbour!
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