This Is Tees Valley This Is Tees Valley - Issue 1 2020 | Page 60

MADE OF
Tees fabrication firm Katmex
is thriving 20 years on
STEEL
WORDS: JOANNE BARRETT
PICTURES: CHRIS BOOTH
T
he Tees Valley was forged on a long
and proud heritage of iron and steel.
Skill and graft from our part of the
world built some of the most iconic
structures around the globe and we often like
to shout about it.
That mammoth scale of industrial might
may have given way to new sectors as the
years have passed but that doesn’t necessarily
mean our expertise in heavy engineering has
gone with it.
And Katmex, a company based in
Stockton, is living proof.
The firm specialises in steel plate
processing and fabrications at its facility
in Norton. Engineering high-precision
components for use in the manufacture
of heavy vehicles like excavators, dump
trucks, forklift trucks and cranes is their core
business.
Katmex supplies some of the biggest
names in the construction equipment
industry including the likes of Komatsu, JCB
and Caterpillar from its base in the North-
East where it is set to celebrate its 20th
anniversary shortly.
Managing director Dave Mitchell was the
first UK employee of the company when it
was established as a division of Japanese steel
plate processing firm Katsushiro Matex to
serve one of its largest clients, Komatsu.
In 2009 Dave negotiated a management
buyout after Katsushiro decided to focus
its business in Asia and Katmex has been
running as an SME ever since.
It was a giant leap, but Dave knew there
was a future for the business which is
undoubtedly one of Teesside’s success stories.
“What that future was I wasn’t too sure
back then, but I started out by talking with
our customers who still wanted a product
from us. I got commitment from them and
kept the business going. It has been running
for the past 10 years, so you could say it has
paid off.
“Our core business has remained the same,
we ship 75% of our machinery to the UK
market and 25% to Europe.”
60
Direction – Katmex managing director
Dave Mitchell says the firm’s reputation
has spread through word of mouth.
Katmex supplies some of
the biggest names in the
construction equipment
industry including the likes of
Komatsu, JCB and Caterpillar
Crucially, the bonds forged with Komatsu
remain strong today – Katmex has recently
been named Komatsu UK’s Supplier of the
Year. The company has also become one of
Midlands-based JCB’s main suppliers.
Katmex employs 125 at its Norton site
and another 30 at a sister plant in Seaham
in neighbouring County Durham. The
workforce is skilled, says Dave, and that’s
another reason why it continues to thrive in
the Tees Valley.
The Norton site measures 20,000 square
metres and has the capacity to process 2,000
tonnes of steel per month with a further
500-tonne capacity at Seaham. As well as
cutting, additional processes can engineer
cut parts to suit customers' needs and
welding, surface preparation and finishing
can all be taken care of in-house too.
Continuous investment in equipment
and machinery has totalled £3.5m since the
management buyout and the plant boasts
both gas and plasma cutting
machines which make use of
the latest technology to ensure
efficiency and high precision.
The machine shop floor is an
impressive place to be, busy, well
ordered and stocked with vast
batches of precision engineered
steel ready and waiting to be
shipped to customers. As much as 1,500
tonnes of plate stock is kept in various
grades and sizes, ensuring whatever the
need for a part might be, Katmex can meet
it.
The company has also recently leased
another building nearby which will be used
to house stock.
Proud moments have come in the team
effort and work ethic on display, says Dave,
qualities which have shone through the past
20 years as Katmex’s reputation has spread
through word of mouth around the world.
“To be able to supply a global company
like Komatsu and be named their supplier
of the year is an achievement – but it’s
not just my achievement, it is everybody’s
achievement,” said Dave.
“Our reputation has spread through word
of mouth, people know who Katmex are
and we are happy to show people what we
can do.”
Email: [e-mail]
W: katmex.co.uk