Member Article

Fast growing Indian and U.S. demand fuels growth at Redcar's Sealpump Engineering

Redcar-based Sealpump Engineering has taken on extra office and workshop space to accommodate a growing team, as it heads for a £1.5m turnover in the next year.

A designer of industrial spraying systems, Sealpump was the first tenant to move into UK Steel Enterprise’s Innovation Centre on the Kirkleatham Business Park at Redcar in 2000.

Now, the engineering company is occupying four times its original space including two workshops having taken over a Birmingham-based company, developed an innovative new spraying system for the food industry and established a global network of distributors that covers the USA, Canada, Poland, India, China and Chile.

Run by Directors Stephen Larkin and Stuart Brown, the firm was started by the late Tony Larkin in 1979 and has 36 years of technical expertise behind it. Its spraying systems are used by industries from steel, mining, chemicals and electronics to pharmaceuticals, automotive and paper. Moreover, the company also supplies systems that control dust, odour and humidity.

From collecting gases and cooling steel to cleaning conveyor belts and coating food products the individually designed systems help companies that include Tata Steel, Weir LGE, Delifrance, Britvic, Cleveland Potash and SSI, to reduce costs, increase productivity and meet stringent environmental standards.

Stephen Larkin said: “Sadly my father died in 2006 just before the company reached its first £1m turnover which had always been his main aim.

“He would have been extremely proud to see the growth and acquisitions that Sealpump has made since then. Everyone on the team is committed to continuing the company’s growth and, I know, does that with my Dad in mind.

Director Stuart Brown said: “Demand is growing particularly fast in India and the USA at the moment and we are working with a number of major household names in the food sector on systems to control humidity.

“We are currently looking for a Sales Manager, who will concentrate mainly on growing our UK market, and an additional engineer to join our team of six.

“Growth is good and Spray Direct, the company we bought three years ago, took us into a number of new sectors and is expected to double its turnover in the next two years.

He added: “The Innovation Centre has been a great place for us to be as the facilities and support we’ve had from UK Steel Enterprise has allowed us to concentrate on growing the business.”

Sue Kirk of UK Steel Enterprise, said: “Tony Larkin was the first tenant that I showed around the Innovation Centre when I was very new and the building wasn’t even finished.

“He was a real gentleman who quickly became a friend and we still miss him. We are very pleased that Sealpump is doing so well and were happy to provide the extra office and workshop space that they needed.”

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