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Interview
Michael Hinchliffe
Chairman, Hargreaves Foundry & Hargreaves Foundry Drainage
Q. Where and when did you start your working career, and how did you progress through to your current position?
I started off working for my father 50 years ago in 1976, as an apprentice pattern maker in his engineering company. It was much different then to today. Did you know that back then there were over 4,000 iron foundries in Britain; now there are fewer than 40?
Engineering seems to have been in decline for most of my working life. Hargreaves Foundry had been started way back in the 19th century by Ebeneezer Hargreaves on this same site in Halifax, but, at the end of 1984, the business closed down and, as the foundry had been one of my dad’ s biggest customers, he made the decision to buy it, and then he installed me to run it.
Whilst we did ok to start with supplying castings to engineering and machine tool manufacturers, the industry was clearly in decline, and a chance meeting with a builders merchant allowed us to switch direction and gain a foothold into the drainage products market as many other suppliers had fallen by the wayside. Cast iron downpipes, guttering, drainage and other architectural castings have been our main focus since the mid-1990s.
You could say that we were lucky to find a new market for us to move into, but you need to have your eyes open to see the opportunity and then have the determination to go ahead and grasp it with both hands.
Since then, we have expanded and have found partners across the world to help us produce the products we need to supply our customers.
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Q. How many people do you employ?
About 50, but we could probably employ more; unfortunately, very few people want to work in a foundry nowadays. There was a lad who came in as an apprentice and, when we started to show him around the foundry, he changed his mind immediately and decided the job was not for him!
Q. If you were to look forward 20 years, where do you see the business?
Well, it would be great if I was still here to see it, as I will be 86!
Seriously, the business is set up really well now, since I have an excellent MD and a great team in place, and we are adding new products to our range such as the aluminium rainwater products.
We only sell through merchants, which works well for us as it leaves us to provide help and support to the end user, and not to worry about selling.
Customers basically just want four things – goods to be delivered on time and to be of the right quality, right quantity and at the price that was agreed.
Q Are the cast iron drainage products that you make just supplied for existing building refurbishment and maintenance?
There are two markets really. The renovation market mainly for cast iron rainwater products, but also the cast iron soil and drainage range that largely goes into new builds, particularly in London in high-rise buildings where the market is very strong.
Q. What do you see as the benefits to you of BMF membership?
It is really all about awareness and finding new customers; a lot of people just don’ t know about us, and those that do may not know that we produce such a wide range of products, including soil and drain products. We also use the BMF to help us to keep up with market sector developments.
Q. I understand that you have been involved in supplying products for some very highprofile buildings over the years?
Yes, our castings have been used in Holyrood, Stirling Castle, Edinburgh Castle and even Buckingham Palace.
We’ ve also been working on the House of Commons refurbishment project now for over 10 years, mainly replacing the cast iron roof tiles and also working on the Big Ben tower, as the top part is all cast iron.
To be chosen to work on projects like these gives us a great feeling of recognition; it really is perhaps the pinnacle of my career. Big Ben must be one of the most iconic buildings in the world.
Interestingly, we have found that many of the processes we have used on these projects are still much the same as those used by the original iron foundries 160 years ago.
Q. You also have famous connections in the art and sculpture world. I heard that you worked with Sir Antony Gormley, who is one of Britain’ s most famous sculptors, who created the Angel of the North?
We’ ve worked for Antony Gormley for 30-odd years, made over 1,000 sculptures for him over that period, and worked very closely with him. I think it just shows our versatility and our ability to spot an opportunity in the market.
Q. How many UK foundries are still left in the UK?
Less than 40, and they are all working in very specialised areas, due mainly to the competition from China, India, Turkey and parts of Eastern Europe.
Q. What keeps you motivated after all these years?
I am relieved that there is a definite future now for us, after the industry has largely been in decline for many years, and that makes me excited for the future of this business. There is certainly going to be a construction industry in 50 years’ time and, so long as we keep looking for the opportunities and understanding what our customers want, we should be fine.