Business Television
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A chance encounter with a journalist working as a reporter in Business Television led Paddy up another interesting and very challenging avenue of film making. Suddenly, it was a new type of teamwork with a journalist as writer and presenter and Paddy as producer and director and camera crews hired from whichever country we were going to. It was a bit like a news team being sent on assignments to remote parts of the world with a story to chase. The only difference was that Paddy’s was business related. Sometimes the companies were well prepared. At other times, he had to lead them by the nose. Either way, each story was carefully crafted with a lot of ‘thinking on one’s feet’ and sudden improvisation.
 So, one week he was in Sweden up near the Arctic Circle filming a revolutionary hardening process for metals that involved burning carbon compounds in lazer beams. The inventor had underfunded his first attempt at turning it into a business and gone bust to the tune of many hundreds of millions of krone. But, undeterred by this setback and with absolute belief in his idea, he had re-financed himself, paid off his debts and was now one of the biggest businesses in Scandinavia with a bank balance of several $ billion. To give you some idea of the processes’ success, Swedish and Swiss Railways had signed massive contracts to have all their rails and rolling stock wheels resurfaced. At the Volvo Truck plant their giant presses had been treated. Previously, each 5 tonne press had been capable of pressing only about 40 body parts before wear caused distortions and a new pressing block had to be installed. With this lazer hardening they were forecasting 40,000 parts per press. Volvo were rubbing their hands with glee at such an improvement in productivity. The problem Paddy had was that the inventor couldn’t string two words together in interview because he was so camera shy!
 Then the next week, he was in Switzerland probing the secret world of private investment banks………. Or the boom that is salmon farming in Scottish lochs, Norwegian fiords and other inlets all over our planet ………….. Or, the ultimate in luxury, a web of sumptuous hotels for the world’s super rich set deep in London’s club land……. Or…..or…..or …. stories that were always absolute superlatives in their field. Paddy travelled the world to tell these tales. New filming techniques. New arrows to his bow. New confidence. |