Richard joined Direct Drains Limited in 1988 with a background in the building industry. He worked in all parts of the business before establishing himself in the operations side specialising in the preparation and production of reports and quotations. He became joint shareholder in the business in 1998.
With the formation of UKDN in 2003 Richard took responsibility for the internal and external auditing of the company. In September 2005, UKDN was appointed to the shared drain protocol list of inspectors and Richard oversees the handling of large complex shared drainage claims on behalf of multiple insurers.
Richard has full responsibility for the operation of UKDN's Midlands base and co-authored the Water Research Centre's Drain Repair Book.