Cheshire gains as manufacturing re-shored at bathroom firm

A NORTH West manufacturer is playing its part in the economic revival by axing its Chinese factory and bringing production back to these shores.

Ours Sanitaryware, which bought the former Ideal Standard Middlewich plant last year, has now ramped-up production at the site and is now running its 85-metre tunnel kiln 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

It is making ceramic toilet bowls for its Impulse Bathrooms range, and also supplying to other companies and OEMs in the UK and internationally.

In order to be cost efficient, tunnel kilns need to be in permanent operation with a continuous feed of product running through the line. New orders justifying its investment have been won from customers in Europe, America and now Australia.

The Middlewich operation now has 160 staff, and this number is growing.

Ours Sanitaryware manufacturing director Brian Standbridge said: “By recruiting an expert and skilled workforce gained with Ideal Standard and Twyfords, both of which closed their pottery factories around the same time, we instantly gained technical know-how and a very healthy can do, will do attitude which has been instrumental in helping us to gain this OEM business.
 
“At the same time we have been able to bring back manufacturing  to its spiritual home in the UK.”

Mr Standbridge added: “The OEM business is not taking work from other British factories. It is bringing in new business from abroad – business which would previously have been going to China or other low cost production countries. 

“Over the last year or so we have successfully generated a sustainable Impulse and OEM order book to make bringing the tunnel kiln into operation an economic proposition.”

The plant produces upto 750,000 pieces of high quality ceramic sanitaryware a year. As a result of its domestic growth Ours Sanitary Ware, has now closed its Chinese production facility transferring all manufacturing to Middlewich.

Mr Standbrige explains: “We took the decision firstly to reduce the capacity in China and now to fully close the plant completely on issues of economy, convenience and speed.  Over the last 18 months since starting manufacture at Middlewich we have proved the decision correct on all aspects.”