Member Article

Analox wins national award for health and safety

Analox Ltd, the Stokesley-based manufacturer of gas analysis equipment, has won the Health and Safety Award at the Best Factory Awards 2012.

Emma Harbottle, Head of Operations for Analox Ltd, said: “Health and safety is at the core of the products and services we provide. Our gas analysis products keep people safe in many different places, such as diving bells, cellars, industrial premises and submarines. This award demonstrates that we practice what we preach and that we are as committed to doing the right thing by our staff as we are for our customers.”

Analox was a finalist in the Best Factory Awards, run for the 21styear by Cranfield School of Management to celebrate manufacturing excellence in the UK. At the Awards Ceremony on Friday, September 28that the Sheraton Park Lane Hotel in London, Analox won the Health and Safety Award and was Highly Commended in the Innovation Category.

Emma said winning the Health and Safety Award was a real surprise. She commented: “We were competing with much larger factories operating potentially hazardous machinery. However, the judges were impressed with our prioritising of health and safety even though the risks in our workplace may be less obvious. They commended our rigorous data collection which has helped cut accidents by 58 per cent in the last four years.

“Our Highly Commended in the Innovation category is also encouraging. Innovation is an important part of our mission statement. The judges recognised that innovation is ingrained throughout our business, and that anyone’s ideas are welcome whether it’s an idea for a new product or to improve internal processes.”

All finalists in the Best Factory Awards receive an in depth benchmarking study from Cranfield School of Management. Emma added: “This is an extremely valuable report which will inform future improvements for the business. We can compare our operations with those of the best factories in the country, including much bigger operations than ours. This is a learning process for Analox and will help us to continuously improve in any way we can.”

In the Best Factory Awards Brochure, Analox is described as a company where ‘there’s proof that skills and innovation count for far more than size’. The judges said that Analox has an ‘absolute focus on customer service and trustworthy ethical operation’.

Analox Ltd is based in Stokesley, North Yorkshire. For more than 30 years, it has specialised in the design and manufacture of gas analysis equipment for a variety of niche markets, including military, commercial and sport diving and the hospitality industry. Many of Analox’s products are market leaders in their sectors.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Emma Hignett, i2i Business Solutions .