Making the case for British exports

Onward Fabrications has produced a furnace casing which is nearly 60ft long, 13ft wide and 11ft tall (18m long x 4m wide x 3.5m high). It is being delivered to customer Hasco Thermic, a galvanizing plant manufacturer, and will then to be shipped to the Transvaal, South Africa, next month where it will be used in the hot dip galvanizing of a large range of steel product.

Managing director Darren Price explained how this important export work was possible: "We have a modern workshop with crane rail height of 12 metres that facilitates the manufacture of large fabrications and structures utilising our overhead cranes. This has allowed us to carry out work on this scale."

The company employs 12 people and has a portfolio of domestic and global customers in a diverse range of sectors.

The goods it produces include huge turntables used by articulated lorries so that they don't have to reverse in built up areas or city centres following a supermarket delivery, robust chargers for foundries to allow maximum utilisation of the furnace and vibratory de-watering and sizing screens for the sand and mineral mining industries. Other projects have included structures and support steelwork, walkways, kilns, dryers, cupolas, air heaters and sheet-metalwork such as hoppers, tanks and dust extraction plant.

The business moved to the Owen Road Industrial Estate in 1984 and during the recession continued to invest by constructing a new building to house a new CNC water jet cutting machine and later purchasing an adjoining building to house CNC milling and turning machines. Darren added: "We haven't come across a material yet that we can't cut, above all the water jet offers a far superior finish to laser cutting and we can cut up to 200mm thick."

Onward now has a total workshop area of 15,000 sq feet with two 20 tonne overhead cranes and two five tonners. This is a far cry from the humble beginnings when John Price, company founder, started the business in a small rented wooden building in Portobello.

Angela Curtis of Hasco Thermic, which ordered the colossal casing, said: "We rely on our suppliers to provide us with the highest quality product in order for us to win business using the British-made brand. Onward Fabrications certainly enable us to do that, their workmanship is excellent and they are great company to work with."

Darren added: "Our longevity is attributed to the sheer scale and capacity of our work along with a firm commitment to and investment in the three P's – people, process and product. Teamwork is hugely important to this business and we've also taken on an apprentice through In-Comm Training in Aldridge, who also help us with our health and safety requirements."

"This has helped us to gain BS EN ISO 9001:2008 Quality Certification, BS EN ISO 14001:2004 Environmental Certification and BS EN ISO 18001:2007 OHSAS Certification."

With a current turnover of £1.5m and a longstanding and expanding customer base Onward Fabrications is in a good position and looking forward to its next milestone – 50 years in business.

For more information call 0121 526 5263.