Member Article

£2.3m move for 40 year old firm

A LOCAL glass company is preparing for a multimillion pound relocation 40 years after it was founded.

Peterlee Glass, which was acquired by Brownhills Investments in 2015, is moving its office and production facilities to Mill Hill on the North West Industrial Estate.

The move comes after the company, which was founded by late businessman David Hawes in the 1977, was acquired by Brownhills Investments and is now headed up by his son Graeme, underwent a period of significant expansion in 2016, adding new contracts to its portfolio and increasing its workforce to 34.

Managing Director Graeme Hawes said: “Since we were acquired in 2015 we’ve grown rapidly and have reached the point where we’ve outgrown our existing premises.

“This move alongside major capital investment will enable us to continue to expand, adding even bigger contracts to our already significant portfolio of national and international clients and recruiting talented people who can help us achieve our ambitious targets.

“It’s fitting that this relocation is happening in the year we celebrate our 40th birthday, and I’m sure my dad would be really proud of how the business has grown since it started in 1977.”

The new 60,000 sq ft facility is currently undergoing £1m of refurbishments, including having a new roof, windows and interior. The new factory should be ready for occupation by Peterlee Glass to move into in April.

The company is also spending £1.3m on new equipment and machinery including a new toughening furnace and processing machinery capable of producing safety glass up to 6000mm x 2800mm.

Peterlee Glass produces architectural glass panels for use in balustrading, canopies, stairs and structural glass installations, mirrors and safety glass to customers including Fenwicks, Primark, TK Maxx, Next and Selfridges.

Its trade centre supplies and installs glass for kitchens, bathrooms and various uses around the home.

The company has supplied glass panels to the Metro Centre, Eldon Square, the British Museum and the Sage Gateshead and has worked on projects as far afield as Europe, the USA and United Arab Emirates.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Felicity Collinson .