WFEL secures new orders worth £38m

NORTH West military bridge maker WFEL has secured a string of new orders worth nearly £38m.

The Stockport engineer has won a £35m contract from the US Department of Defense (DoD) to supply its mobile dry support bridges (DSB).

The order is the third phase of a framework agreement originally agreed with the US Department of Defense in 2000.

To date the US has ordered almost 100 units worth £255m, and has the option to buy a further 30 before 2016.

WFEL, which was the subject of a £48m private-equity backed management buyout in December 2006, has also agreed a £1.3m contract to provide spares to the Department of Defense for its stock of medium girder bridges (MGB) which were first developed by WFEL in the 1970s.

It has also won a £1m order for MGB spares with the UK’s Ministry of Defence. It will also repair and inspect its air portable ferry bridges returning from use in Afghanistan.

The group said sales had jumped 38% to £38.4m in the 12 months to December 2009. Chief executive, Ian Wilson, pictured, said WFEL had identified a number of significant opportunities for new orders for its bridging systems overseas.

He said: “This is another important milestone in our long term partnership with the US, which ensures that we have remained their primary bridging support provider for almost two decades.

“We’re in active discussions with a number of new customers from Europe, South America and the Far East as demand remains strong for both our classic designs like the MGB as well as newer systems such as the DSB.

“With hundreds of our bridges in active use we have continued to capitalise on the enormous potential to provide support services to our customers to prolong the life of their existing assets.”