The Customade Group says 2016 has been its best year yet as it marks ten years since directors John Adams, Nick Gibbons and John Lightowlers took over the business. They say 2016 has been the‘ greatest ever year for investment and recruitment’ in the group’ s 36-year history. Since last July, the Customade Group has ramped up production to record rates and created 35 new jobs within two key operations – trade fabricator Customade and aluminium glazed roof manufacturer Atlas Glazed Roof Solutions. Group manufacturing capabilities have been strengthened with Customade and Atlas both expanding |
into new factories in Stonehouse, Gloucester. The group has also invested more than £ 1.5 million in machinery, premises, staff and stock to help Customade boost aluminium output by 50 % and Atlas to double production of its glazed roofs. To satisfy high demand for aluminium, Customade has expanded into its third factory. The new purpose built 34,000 square foot factory now exclusively manufactures Customade’ s REAL Aluminium range of aluminium windows, bi-folding doors, sliding doors, French doors, residential doors, composite doors and lantern roofs. The fabricator has benefitted from a significant investment |
into new machinery for the factory, which also holds around £ 1million of aluminium extrusions in stock. These advances have significantly increased production rates and helped Customade to satisfy its aluminium lead times of just two weeks. Atlas has expanded production space by 40 % and now operates from a 15,000 square foot factory, which has been kitted out with new equipment. The company is now fabricating 150 orangery and conservatory roofs and 40 flat rooflights per week on a double shift basis. The investment follows a management buyout last year in which industry stalwarts Gareth Thomas, |
John Adams and Winston Osborne became Customade Group shareholders. Nick Gibbons, Customade group’ s operations director, said:“ It’ s ten years since we took over the helm at the business. In those ten years, we’ ve seen boom, bust and Brexit, all of which have thrown their fair share of opportunities and challenges at our industry. I’ m immensely proud to have been part of a dedicated team of people that’ s taken the Customade Group from a £ 5 million turnover company into a group that’ s now at £ 35 million and is still growing.“ In the last decade, we’ ve created hundreds of local jobs and increased our headcount from 80 to 350. |
L to R; John Lightowlers, Nick Gibbons, John Adams
We’ ve more than doubled the number of PVCu frames we manufacture and we’ ve made fantastic in-roads into the modern retail aluminium market. These achievements are a credit to everyone
who has been part of the business in the last ten years and I’ m tremendously excited about the future of the group.”
www. customade. co. uk.
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