Black Country manufacturer bucks credit crunch odds » Communities » 24dash.com

A Black Country metal fabricators which fell victim to the credit crunch is now back on its feet and securing even more work, defying the current economic trend in the process.

SPJ Enterprises Ltd in Bilston employs 15 staff at its Oakley Trading Estate premises. But only months ago the metal fabricators feared it might have to axe jobs after key customers began moving orders overseas to lower-cost producers.

The company, set up in 2001, makes components fitted to anything from office equipment to wheelchairs for a range of clients.

Co-director Sally Barkway explained: “A pattern had started emerging where clients were opting to do business with firms abroad who could undercut us, so turnover started plummeting.

“The real damage was done when an important order from South Africa was suddenly pulled. I had already taken on extra staff in anticipation of the extra work yet I was faced with not being able to pay them, but there was no way I was going to lay them off.

“That, for me, is the one main cause of the troubles faced by so many companies in the West Midlands: companies need to have more trust in their smaller local supply firms rather than looking overseas.

“Our work is of the utmost quality, carried out by fully-trained welders, brazers and assemblers - and orders are always punctual. This means that fewer mistakes are made and if there ever was a problem, because we’re local, it can be resolved quickly.

“A lot of companies don’t think about this and look to cut immediate costs first rather than thinking of the real long term savings associated with UK-based producers.”

Sally turned to Business Link in the West Midlands who sent out manufacturing expert and consultant Mark Edwards to put in place a rescue plan.

Mark is one of more than 1,000 quality-assured experts listed on Business Link’s supplier database and companies can access match funding towards the consultancy fee.

Mark said: “Once we ascertained how SPJ could become more competitive I drew up a structured plan of action and started contacting customers that were no longer on SPJ’s books.

“I’m a firm believer that persistence pays off; and it did. Just by making very simple enquiries and asking people to be brutally honest about why they moved their business away meant that very quickly we were in a negotiating situation to bring the work back.

“We also drew up a Quality Charter stating exactly what clients can expect from SPJ which builds up trust and offers an assurance that work will be done on time and be of the highest quality.

“This approach has won back business for SPJ and they’re now looking to branch out into Europe. The company is now more structured and ordered and ultimately, fitter to compete.”

Sally runs the company with business partner Paul Jennings who has received national awards for his brazing work.

But while Sally, herself a brazer, splits her time between the office and the shop floor, she didn’t have the most promising of starts when training to master the profession.

“During my first week, I literally set my hair on fire after forgetting a very important Health and Safety rule stating not to get too close to the metal or the brazing torch!” she explained.

“The nearest thing around to put the fire out was the slop bucket that we dip the metal in to cool it down, so I had to stick my head in that! I can tell you I’ll never make that mistake twice.”