Fledgling Stourbridge firm's export success

Parry Building Products on the Gainsborough Trading Estate in Rufford Road, Stourbridge, manufactures a range of steel pre-cast moulds for producing building materials including tiles and bricks.

The company, which celebrated its second anniversary on July 25, is now exporting to 19 countries, mainly in Africa including Tanzania, Kenya, Somalia, Ethiopia, Rwanda, Zambia and Malawi.

It even exports to Tahiti in the South Pacific.

Sales and marketing director Oliver Glendenning said: "There is a real demand for the building products that are made using our technology especially in areas without electricity or where it is expensive.

"We offer a whole range of moulds for use in building single and multi-storey structures.

"The technology utilises local natural materials like clay, mud and cement to produce affordable building products."

Parry moulds can now be utilised to make 50 different kinds of building products.

He and his brother, managing director James, employ two full time and two part time staff in the casting operation and expect to take on more workers as they continue to grow.

Parry's customers include entrepreneurs and charities involved in building projects like schools and water towers.

"There is a lot of potential to continue to grow and we are now looking at southern Africa and markets in India and Bangladesh," added Oliver Glendenning.

The ambitious company is looking at achieving turnover of £120,000 for 2014-2015.

Mr Glendenning said that its export success had been achieved without any kind of grant funding or government support to date.

It is now getting help in identify potential new markets from the British African Business Alliance, which links UK firms up with potential new partners in Africa, and from UK Trade and Investment.

"We are also developing new products like cement mixtures and stone-crushing machinery and we have had interest from local government to do housing projects in Nigeria and Sierra Leone after the Ebola crisis.

"They think our equipment can also help create many jobs and develop the local economy," he added.

The Parry Building Products technology offers considerable cost-saving construction techniques for affordable housing.

The business also offers consultancy services and training to maximise the efficiency of its products for the end user.

It has also successfully built up a network of associates and agents in the countries it is exporting to.

Parry Building Products strives to adopt green work practices wherever possible to have a positive impact on the environment.

It promotes manually powered equipment which does not require electricity, gas or fuel maintaining a low carbon footprint in its use.

More information about the range of Parry Building Products is available on its website at www.parrybuildingproducts.com