Member Article

Growth on the horizon as Worcester celebrates 65 years of press excellence

One of the UK’s leading providers of mechanical and hydraulic presses is set to mark 65 years of manufacturing in Stourbridge by hitting £1.75m annual sales in 2014.

Worcester Presses, which employs 8 people at its Titan Works factory, has enjoyed a surge in demand for its range of machines, with strong growth currently being seen across key industry sectors, including automotive, aerospace and building products.

More than 26 presses - ranging in size from 3 to 3000 tonnes - were sold in the UK last year and this has seen turnover increase to over £1.5m, creating a job for the firm’s first apprentice in more than two decades.

The company is hoping this figure will increase rapidly, with the MACH 2014 Show in April set to mark the unveiling of a new 60 tonne press, with quick die change and touch screen control.

“We’re really proud of our Black Country roots and delighted to have been serving customers from our Stourbridge factory for more than 65 years,” explained Russell Hartill, Sales Director at Worcester Presses.

“There have been a lot of changes over that time and we’ve had to evolve our product range to continue to be competitive and retain our market share.”

He continued: “This has included the strategic relationships we’ve forged with Chin Fong and Yeh Chiun to supply their power presses and hydraulic presses in the UK.

“We are still manufacturing machines from our factory and also offering a full refurbishment and repair service and one of the most comprehensive spares stocks in the UK.

“The ability to respond quickly, often by having one of our experienced engineers on site within hours, is something many of our rivals can’t match.”

Operating from its 10,000 sq ft site, Worcester Presses provide access to a comprehensive range of power and hydraulic machines, covering bench, straight side double crank, c-frame hydraulic and servo presses.

The company also offers a host of coil handling and ancillary products and has the capability to configure feeders, decoilers, levelers, guards, quick die changes and other modifications to meet bespoke customer requirements.

Charles Higgins, who has been involved in the business for more than 30 years, continued: “2013 represented a major shift in purchasing attitudes from our customers.

“Our turnover was pretty much 90% power presses at the start of the year, but this has since changed to a much more even split across our three main product areas.

“The current high level of investment in automotive industry has generated a real demand for our machines from this sector, as the tier 1s and tier 2s are looking to really ramp up production to cope with OEM demands.”

Charles concluded: “We’re also investing in stock machines which will enhance our appearance at MACH 2014 and have got a new 60 tonne Chin Fong press to unveil.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Russ Cockburn .