Member Article

Middlesbrough engineering firm celebrates international orders

A Middlesbrough-based engineering company is expanding its premises and staff numbers after winning £5m of new orders.

QA Weld Tech Ltd is celebrating the new orders for BP’s redevelopment of the Scheihallion oilfield west of Shetland, the huge Ichthys LNG Project off the West coast of Australia and contracts in Brazil’s offshore pre-salt areas.

In order to fulfill the orders, QAWT have created 12 new positions in various departments, including additional welders, and taken on further facilities to house specialised equipment.

Established by current managing director, Charles Tighe, in 1980, QA Weld Tech specialises in the fabrication of flowbends and pipespools for subsea production systems.

Discussing the expansion, he said: “Three years ago we took on additional fabrication space and built a new two-story office block that, at the time, seemed almost too big for our needs. We’ve now filled that with new employees and have taken on further facilities to house shot-blasting equipment and fabrication bays for our Brazilian projects.”

There are plans to expand even further. Tighe added: “We also have plans to increase our machine shop capabilities, add further weld cladding equipment, and redevelop our pressure testing bays.”

With 70% of production going for export the Company’s products can be found on major projects around the World.

Brazil is key. Tighe added: “The opportunities in Brazil are huge and that country is the focus of our first overseas expansion of the business with the development of QA Weld Tech Brazil.”

Earlier this year, QAWT invested half a million pounds in their Middlesbrough factory, increasing fabrication capacity, new equipment such as overhead cranes and fabrication and welding equipment, and also improving environmental conditions for the workforce.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Graham Vincent .