This International Women’s Day, we’re proud to celebrate two incredible women at Beatson Clark: Liz Loonam, Distribution Manager, and Emma Hudson, Compliance Manager.
At the 2025 Women in Packaging Awards, Liz won the Supply Chain and Logistics Excellence Award, while Emma was a runner-up for the Quality Assurance Excellence Award. These accolades reflect their dedication, leadership, and the high standards they bring to their roles.
We sat down with Liz and Emma to learn about their journeys, insights, and the vital contributions they make to the day-to-day running of our business. Here’s what they had to say.
Liz Loonam - Distribution Manager
Early Career
On leaving school, I joined the British Army as a driver. I achieved all the necessary licences, so I drove all kinds of vehicles, from lorries to tanks and everything in between. I did a tour of Afghanistan and a tour of Iraq, so it was a memorable start to my career. I also worked as a radio operator in the army, but I left after eight years to start a career outside the armed forces.
Joining Beatson Clark
As I was familiar with driving heavy vehicles, a career in logistics and distribution felt like a natural progression for me. I accepted the role of Distribution Administrator at Beatson Clark in 2013, and within seven years, I had been promoted to Distribution Manager.
I now manage 18 forklift drivers and deal with 30 hauliers. It’s a very male-oriented environment but I don’t mind that. I think the forklift drivers and the lorry drivers respect me for having worked as a driver in the army; they can see that I’ve done their job.
In a typical day, I oversee the transport office, manage the Transport Co-ordinator, and oversee all the deliveries going out of the factory. We produce over 600 million glass containers per year, and these deliveries can be up to 30 HGV loads per day, 5 days a week, 51 weeks of the year.
Raising standards at Beatson Clark
I maintain the financial audits for the warehouse and in 2025, for the first time, the audit showed zero discrepancies, which was a fantastic achievement for my team. The proportion of deliveries made on time and in full are also at record levels, which is very pleasing.
Beatson Clark has always emphasised quality and customer service, and part of my job is to minimise customer complaints. Deliveries can sometimes go wrong, so I regularly talk to forklift drivers to ensure accountability. I also secured an extra team member who physically checks every pallet that leaves the factory. If they identify anything wrong with the stock, that pallet is recalled. Thanks to these efforts, complaints reduced by 46%. in just two years.
Sustainable Practices
Reducing breakages and contamination is not only good for business and customer relations – it’s also a more sustainable way of operating. Every breakage means wastage, and more energy and raw materials are used making replacements. By reducing the number of complaints from customers, we’re saving time, energy and resources.
We’re also much more mindful now of how many brand-new pallets we’re ordering. We conduct a regular count and only order top-up pallets when we need them.
Emma Hudson – Compliance Manager
Early Career
After studying Crime Scene Science at university, I worked in a food technology lab to gain analytical experience and soon became Quality Officer for the whole site, my first step into quality assurance. I then managed the chemistry lab at Prosper de Mulder for two and a half years, and spent five years as Head of Quality at Two Sisters Food Group, ensuring all food leaving the premises was 100% safe.
Working at Beatson Clark
I moved to Beatson Clark in 2019 as Compliance Manager, and over the past seven years I’ve taken on many additional responsibilities. I manage all our quality systems, ensuring we adhere to our own standards, and I’m responsible for our ISO 9001 and BRCGS packaging standards.
When we decided to launch a new glass decorating plant, I was asked to oversee the compliance, writing a full quality management system so we could achieve accreditation in both ISO 90001 and BRCGS standards, which we now have. Since taking responsibility for BRCGS accreditation, Beatson Clark’s grade for both the main manufacturing site and the glass decorating plant has risen from A to AA, the highest score possible.
I also get involved in the Emission Trading Scheme and various decarbonisation projects. I conduct environmental audits and I calculate all our 1, 2 and 3 scope greenhouse gas emissions.
Improving QA processes
Since joining Beatson Clark, I have implemented SafetyCulture, an online platform that gives teams the knowledge, tools and confidence to work safely and meet higher standards. It’s a better way to manage our quality audits and quality assurance, and it helps us to carry out our audits online and in a more structured way.
I also introduced EdApp, a digital microlearning tool, which has revitalised how we introduce learning to colleagues on the shop floor.
Setting and advancing industry standards
I am a member of the technical committee for quality standards at British Glass, and my input contributed to the writing of version six of the BRC standard. For two years, I’ve also been a member of the environmental committee, which discusses environmental issues, emissions trading, the EU’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) and other topics. Where we disagree with government policy, I help to formulate messaging to put our case across.
When developing our new glass decorating plant, I was the lead contact with Rotherham Borough Council advising them on what industry standards applied in terms of our discharge permits.
Shaping the Future Together
Liz and Emma's achievements reflect the great impact women make across our business and the packaging sector. We’re proud to celebrate their contributions and the example they set for future generations of women in manufacturing, logistics and quality.
