Design Automation’s next step

12 months after making the biggest move in our history, Design Automation director John Morris reflects on our change of premises.

Every growing business faces the same issue sooner or later. Our move was essential. We’d enjoyed a 50% increase in turnover at our old Adlington premises, but further growth was stymied by the limitations of the building. There simply wasn’t room for one more person or one more machine.

We did want to remain local though. The expertise of our team is our greatest asset so it was important that any move worked for our people as well as the business. Happily, we found premises over two floors, still in Adlington, at a former marine lighting manufacturing facility.

Assessing the Impact

There are two elements to this. In the short term we have more space that we’re already filling with new people and machinery. This year we were able to recruit one skilled engineer and an apprentice, and our equipment now includes one CNC toolroom lathe, three vertical machining centres, a tool grinding section and our new 3D printer.

But the new building has also enabled us to look at the way work flows between floors and we’re now able to use the layout to improve efficiency. That’s an ongoing process, but it means we’re now well placed to continue the growth that our old premises had inhibited.

We’d love to show you around, so if you have a machining, prototyping or toolmaking project you’d like discuss, why not do it in person? Please get in touch to arrange a visit