Manufacturer gears up for Middle East boom
A NORTH West small business which makes speed limiters for commercial vehicles is hoping to drive away with orders of more than £5m from the Middle East this week.
Oldham-based Autokontrol is exhibiting at the Automechanika Middle East Show in Dubai, the world’s leading trade fair for the automobile sector.
The £2.8m turnover company – which exports 60% of sales – helps the operators of commercial vehicles, buses, coaches, cars and vanscontrol drivers’ speeds.
Autokontrols products have been sold to more than 40 countries, and can be found worldwide on everything from bread vans in Jamaica to quad bikes in Canada.
Marketing director Ron Tagg is attending Automechanikawith UK Trade & Investment (UKTI), where he will be meeting bus operators, manufacturers and distributors, ahead of the introduction of laws requiring all school buses and minibuses to install approved speed limiters by the end of the year – which could lead to additional potential new business of up to £6m.
Autokontrol has operated in the UAE for more than 20 years – 40,000 of their products are already installed onto vehicles in the UAE, helping to reduce road accidents and decrease fuel consumption and CO2 emissions.
The Royton-based firm has been trading for over 30 years and employs more than 20 people.
Autokontrol’s is confident that it will see further international sales growth with speed limiter legislation soon to be introduced in several countries including Morocco, Turkey, Brazil, Ghana and Nigeria.
Mr Tagg says, “One of our strengths, as well as our technology, is that we have a good worldwide network of distributors, agents and OEM’s, and we have been helped tremendously in this by UKTI, and our international trade adviser, Barbara Singleton.
“Being supported by UKTI gives us a competitive advantage, especially when dealing with potential large international customers.”
Barbara Singleton added: “Autokontrol is a fantastic example of a British company making great strides overseas thanks to not only the quality and reliability of their products, but also to the experience, skills and dedication of a loyal workforce.”
