Who We Are

We're a group of experienced software engineers and problem solvers based in Edinburgh. With a combined 50+ years in biotechnology, engineering and manufacturing we have a wide range of skills to rely on to get the job done.

Firefinch started in 2017 when four senior R&D members from a biotech multinational decided to go their own way. Founded with the aim to get software development right we use best practice and experience to get the right balance between cost and complexity for every customer.  We've since grown to seven people by bringing in specialist skills from other sectors.

Team Firefinch

Darren Troy

Darren has years of experience in managing both small and large software projects. Through this he has learnt a few things: that maintaining software quality during development is critical, that good communication is essential to ensure that the software meets the user's needs, and that simplicity in design leads to long term maintainability.
Matt Connelly

Matt is the systems analyst in the team. From his previous role as a scientist he brings significant experience in developing and testing products and processes. And as a dedicated R advocate, he is often happiest when sifting through data to find solutions to real world problems.
Barry McHoull

Barry is the tech evangelist for the team. He's motivated to find and explore new technologies to see what he can bring back to the world of serious programming. His previous life as a software project manager at a biotech company gives him a great understanding of the whole process of designing software, from conception to delivery.
William Acton

Will's keen attention to detail and consistency has led him to become the team's UI/UX champion, ensuring that customer-facing software is elegant and painless to use. Experienced in instrumentation communication and control, he can usually be found bridging the gap between R&D teams and the end-users.
Ruaidhri Primrose

Ruaidhri is an experienced architect and developer with a record of leading Agile development teams and comfortable working on all elements of software development, from product design and development through to production deployment and on-going maintenance. He specialises in cloud projects and has an extensive background working in heavily regulated fields.
Sophie Read

Sophie is a marketing professional with over twenty years of experience in manufacturing and life science roles. When Sophie isn't working she is an active STEM Ambassador and has an allotment.
Steven Swan

Steven has years of experience working on fintech projects and B2B cloud and on-premise solutions. He has worked both on in-house developed products and as a consultant for both small and large projects giving him a breadth of experience of different software processes and development practices over a wide range of technologies.
Richard Addison

Rich is a software engineer with 10 years of commercial development experience, primarily in the fintech industry. As well as being proficient in multiple technologies, Rich is also a qualified scrum master.
Patrick O'Neill

Patrick is a former business owner with a decade in engineering experience gained in both Scotland and Norway. From handling custom client designs to working offshore, he's familiar with the challenges that our clients face.
Noura Elhakim

Noura is a talented software engineer with a knack for asking the right questions about new software projects. With experience in the financial services she's aware of how important getting the data right is to our customers.
Jonny Reading

Jonny is a full-stack engineer with a strong history in providing powerful data visualizations in high pressure environments. He started out building plugins for image processing software and moved into software engineering to pursue his talents further.
Andrew Kirkwood

Andrew has a decade in technical roles from architectural technician to Subsea project engineering before becoming a developer. When not developing, Andrew spends his time making and producing music

Our Board of Advisors

We asked the mentors who guided the development of our careers to help oversee and advise the Firefinch enterprise. With strong backgrounds and expertise in product and business development, engineering, marketing, and academia, our board of advisors continue to provide us with their insight and wisdom.

Stuart Polwart

Stuart is an Engineering Consultant with more than 40 years’ experience of product development and business management across the defence, automated banking, mobile communications and life science sectors including management roles with Unisys, Motorola, and most recently as Technology Director for the Microfluidics Division of Agilent Technologies. He was also Co-founder and Director of three separate successful start-up ventures, the most recent being Lab901 which was acquired by Agilent in 2011.

Dr. James Hopgood

James is the Director of Electronics and Engineering at the University of Edinburgh. He works in the disciplines of Data Science and Machine Learning within the field of Statistical Signal Processing. Since September 2011, James has been the Editor-in-Chief for the IET Journal of Signal Processing.  James has worked closely with the Firefinch team since 2014 on a Data Science research project.

Donna is Senior Director, Global Marketing at Twist Bioscience. She is an accomplished Commercial Leader with over fifteen years experience in the biotechnology & life science industries. Skilled in marketing strategy, brand development and R&D within fields such as DNA Sequencing, Molecular Diagnostics, and Synthetic Biology, Donna has worked with the Firefinch team since 2020.

Dr. Donna McDade Walker

Donna is Senior Director, Global Marketing at Twist Bioscience.  She is an accomplished Commercial Leader with over fifteen years experience in the biotechnology & life science industries. Skilled in marketing strategy, brand development and R&D within fields such as DNA Sequencing, Molecular Diagnostics, and Synthetic Biology, Donna has worked with the Firefinch team since 2020.

Proud Members Of

BioIndustry Association
IBioIC

Carbon Audit

Firefinch have a commendably low emissions footprint. As a company they clearly prioritise efficiency and have instituted savings across their carbon footprint through conscious choices in the ways they travel, produce and work as a company.

They are a clear exemplar for the ways that lean, efficient technology organisations can embed sustainability principles and act responsibly to minimise their impacts on the surrounding environment and economy.

Williamson Consulting would have no hesitation in recommending Firefinch for project involvement in public sector work given often progressive overarching regional and national emissions targets. With an acute understanding of how organisations are structuring sustainability programmes, we have confidence that collaboration with Firefinch will benefit these processes and help to reduce emissions.