Member Article

National triumph for fast growing firm

A Tyneside firm’s £10 million drive for growth has paid dividends with a burgeoning order book and a prestigious national award.

Turnover at Team Valley based Express Engineering (Thompson) Ltd. has gone through the £30 million mark for the first time in the company’s 40 year history, helping it to land the Business Growth Award at the EEF Future Manufacturing Awards.

The accolade follows an ambitious five year growth programme which has seen the company’s manufacturing floor space and staff levels more than double.

New facilities, new equipment, an apprenticeship scheme and a joint venture in Brazil are now paying great dividends with production – around a third of which is for export - and profit growing strongly.

“A great deal of credit for this must go to our people, who have been focused and flexible throughout, particularly during some difficult days a couple of years back,” said Managing Director Nigel Davison after receiving the award at the Grand Connaught Rooms in London’s west end: “This year marks our 40th Anniversary and winning this award for business growth is a great way to start our celebrations.”

Award sponsor, Jill Davies, Chief Executive of Westfield Health, said the judges were particularly impressed with Express’ innovative use of international partnerships, which has enabled on-going, long term growth.

“It’s inspiring to see the growth that has been achieved in such a tough climate,” she said: “The company is a real example of what can be achieved through having the right investment structure and strategy in place.”

Express Engineering now boasts 60,000 sq. ft. of manufacturing floor space in the UK, 230 staff - including 34 apprentices – and a 55,000 sq. ft. joint venture manufacturing operation in Brazil employing 50 people.

It is a market leading supplier of precision machined components and supplies engineered solutions to the oil, gas, power generation, defence and aerospace industries.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Paul Dobbie .