Member Article

South West growth strategy delivers jobs and new facility for engineering company

The growth strategy of a national engineering business, targeted at South West England’s food and beverage sector, has paid early dividends, creating a 20% increase in jobs and forcing the organisation to relocate to a larger manufacturing facility in Langford, Somerset.

adi Process Pipework, a division of the multidisciplinary engineering business, adi Group, that deals with the transit of ingredients in food and drink production is only 18 months into a five year strategic assault on the South West but is already way ahead of its own ambitious growth projections.

Such is the business’ expansion that it has outgrown its existing 8,000 sq. ft. facility in Mells, Somerset, and, in order to meet the demands of new clients and a bulging order book, been compelled to secure new 20,000 sq. ft. premises across the county in Langford.

The move comes after adi Process Pipework last year identified the South West as a key region for growth due to the presence of a series of food and drink manufacturers.

As a result of ongoing investment in the region, growth is trending ahead of all key performance indicators and measures set out for the five year initiative.

Stephen Forrester, managing director of adi Process Pipework, explained the success of the strategy, saying, “The South West is a fantastic base for food and drink production, so we opted last year to actively expand our presence in the region.

“We have a number of long-standing relationships in the region but, having made real investments in people and in skills, we have been able to grow our order book with them and secure a number of interesting projects with new clients.

“But the scale of our growth in the South West has taken even us by surprise. We hadn’t really thought about needing new facilities, so, when the need arose, it was a nice problem to have.

“Our new Langford manufacturing facility increases our capacity to design and fabricate the solutions clients require. It’s in a prime location, just a few short miles from Thatchers Cider, one of our biggest customers, and gives us easy access to the motorway network and, therefore, clients throughout the South West.”

adi Process Pipework has worked closely with Thatchers for a number of years, most recently on the expansion of its Sandford operation. The business also partners with Premier Foods, Saputo, Wyke Farm and Nestlé in the South West.

Stephen says adi Process Pipework success in the South West aligns well with the wider adi Group’s approach.

“The Group has managed to grow during the three previous recessions since its establishment in 1990, so we see this as something of a vindication that investing in people and in capabilities at the most challenging of times makes a positive commercial impact.

“The business as a whole is focusing on food and beverage manufacturing at the moment. Self-delivering over 30 specialist engineering disciplines in-house, we’re well placed to offer solutions throughout the lifecycle of any food and beverage project.

Our increased presence in the South West not only means we’ll be able to identify more opportunity for other adi Group divisions but also to create the jobs and investment in skills that go with it. To that end, we’re actively looking to bring in more people, as I speak.“

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by adi Group .