Small proves beautiful for Telford manufacturer
Small really is proving beautiful for a Telford manufacturer that saw annual sales reach a record £3.6m in 2011.
Advanced Chemical Etching (A.C.E) has developed a global reputation for providing precision components, prototyping and low volume production for next generation aircraft, F1 cars and state-of-the-art medical implants.
From its expanding base on Hortonwood, the company has increased its staff by 30% to 35 employees in order to cope with demand for its photo etched parts coming from China, the Eurozone and, thanks to recent trade visits, increasingly the United States.
The global approach has paid dividends with overseas sales now accounting for £1m of turnover and has played a major role in the firm beating off 20 contenders to secure a recent ‘Made in the Midlands’ Award.
Alan Rollason, Managing Director, explained: “After the tough times of 2009, it is excellent to be sitting here and seeing investments in new processes and technologies pay off across virtually every industry we operate in.
“The growth is fantastic news for the business as it illustrates we are doing the right things and also highlights the outstanding work of our staff, many of whom have been with us since the start.
“This is just the beginning and we’ve got ambitious plans to invest nearly £1m in expanding the production area by the acquisition of additional factory space as well as new state-of-the-art machinery.”
A.C.E. specialises in development of prototype components, pre-production and volume fulfillment to customers in aero, automotive, electronics, medical, telecoms and renewables.
The scope of its activities is far and wide and can include anything from safety critical components for aircraft and F1 to meshes and connectors for cars and even frames for designer glasses.
All parts are developed and manufactured in Telford or at the company’s dedicated sister business, ACE Forming Limited, in Kingswinford.
Latest production machinery, a dedicated laboratory and state-of-the-art measuring capability ensures it works to the most exacting tolerances and can manufacture components in materials, such as stainless steel, nickel alloys, copper, beryllium copper, phosphor bronze and aluminum.
The introduction of new processes has also seen the firm offer customers the ability to etch titanium and molybdenum.
Ian Wiles, Sales Director at A.C.E., concluded: “Our record year has been supported by what can only be described as a buoyant export market, with close to 30% of our turnover now going overseas.
“This includes established markets like Germany and the Benelux countries and increasingly new opportunities from China and the US where other rivals simply can’t match the level of innovation we continually achieve.”
Advanced Chemical Etching Limited is part of the Midlands Assembly Network (www.man-group.co.uk), a collective of ten sub-contract manufacturers who work together to share best practice and pitch for new work.
The group, which won £10m of orders in 2011, includes Alucast, Barkley Plastics, Brandauer, FW Cables, Lightning Aerospace, PP Electrical Systems, SMT Developments, Westley Engineering and Wrekin Circuits.
