overall Manufacturing Award

at the 2022 North East Business

Awards grand final ; reflecting

the company ’ s growth , investment

and impressive manufacturing

capabilities that have

been so well documented

across the last 12 months .

The Manufacturing Award

has a wide-ranging scope ,

with the main aim being to

highlight those companies

across the North East of

England that have impressed

the judging panel via their

demonstration of manufacturing

excellence , alongside

attributes such as design and

innovation , quality , efficiency

and sales flair .

When deciding which

of the top manufacturing

organisations in the region

to take home the coveted

prize , judges looked not just

at the company ’ s capacity

and output in the direct sense ,

but also how it extends into

the local region . Factors such

as investment in equipment

and of course people were

carefully considered , as well

as sales performance and

how the business is looking to

set its strategy for the future .

That strategy includes not only

manufacturing innovation ,

growth prospects and sales ,

but also key attributes such

as sustainability , markets

served and the continuous

development of efficiency and

productivity .

One factor that helped Made For Trade stand out from the award competition proved to be the relatively unique position of being both a design and fabrication outfit in one efficient organisation – something that has proved to be pioneering in the fenestration industry . When it comes to glazing outfits , the products have progressed but the manufacturing technology and engineering has remained relatively stagnant ; the predominant model is of large organisations developing products and supplying parts to fabricators , who in turn supply their customers .

Made For Trade however encompasses the full timeline , from initial design through to in-house delivery – all for the benefit of efficiency , improving quality and reducing cost . MFT stands out from competitors thanks to its progression from a small installer and fabricator , to a manufacturing outfit bringing revolutionary techniques and processes to the industry , helping to fuel growth and invest in a well-trained local workforce . The engineering division features experience from the automotive and motorsport sectors ; bringing a new level of precision not only

to the product design , but also the manufacturing processes to elevate the fenestration products to a completely new level against the competition . The company is proud of its history : founded by Richard Gaunt in 1979 as Aanco and gaining significant credibility in the area from the outset thanks to its reputation for quality and service , Made For Trade remains a family business led by Richard ’ s sons Bradley as Managing Director , and Ashley as Technical Director . Last year saw the business grow with a turnover increase of 31 %, and whilst Made for Trade remains B2B , the drive to increase homeowner interaction has seen MFT ’ s Korniche brand become synonymous with desirable glazing products – to the extent that it is now requested by name to trade installers .

Now operating from three purpose-built fabrication units with more than 250,000 sqft and employing more than 150 highly trained operatives , Made for Trade continues to invest in growth ; with a quarter of pretax profits being put towards new assets , from facilities to state of the art CNC equipment .

Investing in staff has gone hand-in-hand – training helped 57 % of operators move up a grade and back the local workforce , whilst recruitment has been filled with a mix of external talent and in-house promotion – all factors that were paramount when judges considered the Manufacturing Award shortlist .

The drive to simplify production and reduce inventory led to an investment of nearly £ 1M back in 2019 and 2020 on machinery to support the new product , whilst in-house software was developed to improve CNC sequencing , reduce waste and costly machine time . The Korniche bi-folding door for example , was designed and developed completely by the in-house engineering team before being manufactured alongside at the same Wynyard site , with a number of unique and innovative features that set it apart from the competition . From the patented ‘ Speedbead ’ and anti-backdrive handle , to the built-in ventilation and sealed roller bearing guides , no rivals came close for the same engineering focus that relies on quality manufacture .

10 DECEMBER 2022

CLEARVIEW-UK . COM