Member Article

Catterick-based manufacturing firm invests seven figure sum in eco-friendly operation

Hellens Group, which has businesses in the construction, manufacturing, property and social housing sectors across the North East and North Yorkshire, has invested in excess of £1m in its Catterick manufacturing plant, Oakdale. Within the past 18 months the facility, which produces sustainably sourced building products and paving, has benefitted from the seven-figure investment to create a new manufacturing line which has more than doubled its capacity. Oakdale employs 30 people directly and in the 25 years since it was established, it has recruited a number of ex-MOD employees who previously worked at Catterick Garrison. The firm utilises low carbon production processes together with innovative batch designs and conceived the concept of Greenscaping®, or hard landscaping, which is kinder to the environment. The Greenscaping® concept demands Oakdale achieves up to 80 per cent recycled products within its AirPave® photocatalytic paving range and up to 85 per cent recycled material in other products. Oakdale recently installed a unique hydraulic wet-press designed to facilitate the inclusion of substantial quantities of recycled materials if and when required. Gavin Cordwell-Smith, chief executive of Hellens Group, said: “Hellens Group is committed to providing sustainable and affordable manufactured goods through our Oakdale plant, and our significant investment over the past 18 months demonstrates this. “We were experiencing a huge demand for our products pre-COVID due to their popularity and the increased activity levels in the housebuilding and construction sectors. This has continued since the initial lockdown period and we have recently received a substantial order for the new Midland Metropolitan Hospital in Birmingham, which is nearing completion. “We absolutely refuse to compromise on our commitment to the environment and sourcing sustainable materials, even when there is competition from other firms. This is why we’re expanding and investing to ensure we’re ahead of the curve. We want to lead the way in using sustainable materials in creating our products. “We hope that, through our research and development, and this implementation of our ground-breaking technology, we will be able to continue to expand our range of excellent quality landscaping products which are kind to the environment.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Caroline Walker .