NEWS
From the spare room to the world stage
Celebration – IMH MD James Griffiths chats to guests at the company ’ s 40th birthday party at Acklam Hall .
Middlesbrough firm IMH celebrates 40 years of business
Hydraulic engineering firm Industrial and Marine Hydraulics ( IMH ) is celebrating 40 years of providing engineering excellence to customers all over the world .
Founded in June 1983 by hydraulic engineer Paul Griffiths MBE , the company has grown from a home-based business to a global player in hydraulic engineering , with experience of working in more than 50 countries .
In 2019 Paul ’ s son James Griffiths took over the position of managing director , with Paul stepping back to a position on the board . However , Paul is still very much a close part of the business and regularly runs technical training sessions with the IMH team and especially its cohort of apprentices .
The company has invested heavily in its people over the years , launching an apprenticeship programme in 1995 that recently welcomed its 28th apprentice , and opening a training centre in 2014 .
The company attributes much of its success to its employees and to delivering world-class engineering knowledge in its training , and it sees its future success being driven by its investment in people .
“ The company , like many others , has overcome a number of challenges over the years , but what has seen us through is the knowledge , expertise and drive of our team , and for that we ’ re grateful ,” said James .
“ We talk of the IMH family , which we are , and we want to continue to be recognised as an employer of choice .
“ We will do this by always looking to make improvements to become even better than we are now , so that we ’ ll still be going strong for at least another 40 years , further safeguarding the long-term future of the business .”
To celebrate the company ’ s success and thank the team and their families , as well as customers and suppliers , IMH hosted an evening at Acklam Hall .
The award-winning wedding and events venue – the only Grade 1 listed building in Middlesbrough – welcomed IMH and guests for an evening of food , drinks and laughter .
IMH ’ s team has worked on a number of technical and challenging projects around the world , including installing pipework , accumulators and manifolds for the largest construction vessel in the world , Pioneering Spirit , manufacturing and installing hydraulic systems for tilting frames for vessels used to install monopiles at the Rampion Offshore Wind Farm and manufacturing hydraulic power units and installing pipework to power the Boston Barrier – a major flood defence barrier in Lincolnshire .
IMH ’ s customers can tap into a deep source of hydraulic engineering talent , from consultation and initial specification through to design , manufacture and delivery , as well as accessing its wellstocked components supply and hire fleet .
And with expert advice and support always on hand , customers have the peace of mind of knowing they could not be in safer hands .
Family line – Founder Paul Griffiths with son James .
About IMH
Headquartered in Middlesbrough , IMH is a UK distributor and service partner for the HYDAC product range and a Certified Excellence Service Partner for Bosch Rexroth . The company delivers major hydraulic engineering projects and offers services across design , manufacture , maintenance and repairs , as well as component supplies and training .
Its training provision is something that is seen as a driver of its success and is something the company is immensely proud of . This year , the company has taken on four apprentices in various roles from Hartlepool College of Further Education . And IMH has further strengthened its partnership with the college by opening a hydraulic / pneumatic engineering lab at the college that features donated equipment from IMH to enable the students to have real-world training opportunities .
The company ’ s efforts to support earn and learn schemes has also been recognised with its award of gold membership to The 5 % Club . For more information visit imh-uk . com
104 | Tees Business