Following on from their success at the 2019 Made in the Midlands Exhibition, where they came away with leads that led to two successful collaborations with fellow Made in the Midlands Members, Hitherbest Sheet Metal Fabrications now looks forward to repeating that success at the 2020 exhibition.
The company, which was established in 1985, is a family-owned business with a distinguished history for both the quality of their product and their customer support. Based near the M54 and the M6, they're only a heartbeat away from the entire country.
Combined with their BSI certification to ISO 9001:2015, and their own fleet of vehicles, the company prides itself on being able to bring the product all the way to your door, all with a competitive lead time.
Speaking about their plans for this year's Expo, Managing Director Peter Grant and Field Sale Manager Adam Hirons, who you'll find at their stand, located at F7 on the floor plan, sat down with Made in the Midlands to discuss what to expect from the company this year.
Asked about their plans for the Expo this year, Peter stated, " We are excited to have the opportunity to showcase our sheet metal fabrication and powder-coating capabilities, which enable us to produce high-quality fabrications for small, medium and large companies working across several sectors. We're also looking forward to the Expo for the valuable networking opportunities. Attending previous Made in the Midlands events has led to a number of collaborations, including an ongoing project with the Warwick Manufacturing Group, designed to further streamline and optimise our production processes.".
This idea of demonstrating the wide range of technologies that the company holds makes sense when you consider the nearly £400,000 investment it has made in its Telford plant over the past 12-months. The aim of which was to ensure that Hitherbest retains its status as the ideal manufacturing partner for businesses throughout the Midlands and beyond.
One of their most recent investments has been in laser technology, with the company purchasing a 2.5kW gas laser which has an accuracy of 0.001mm and can cut mild steel, stainless steel and aluminium with a thickness of 12, 5 and 4mm respectively.
The acquisition of this powerful, high-performance laser has enabled Hitherbest to undertake in-house fabrication of products featuring complex, curved and irregular edges and cut-outs increasing the services they can offer to the community, such as those attending the Expo.
Furthermore, by minimising the use of third parties, the investment in laser technology has enabled the company to keep control of every stage of the fabrication process – ensuring that fabrications always meet its high-quality standards. Which is something Hitherbest would want to ensure after a 2018 survey scored them 9.6 out of 10 for product quality and 10 out of10 for customer service.
Speaking on the back of these investments, Owner and Director Dr Nicky Evans said, "We are excited to be able to add in-house laser cutting to the list of services on offer at Hitherbest. We are hugely proud of our exceptional record for customer service and are confident that our many loyal customers will reap the benefit of this investment. The purchase of the new laser cutting machine is just one of the exciting developments taking place at Hitherbest at the moment, as the company continues to grow."
On the back of the £400,000 investment, the Telford-based plant now boasts:
- A Radan CAD CAM design and programming suite.
- 2x Trumpf Trumatic punch press machines.
- 1x Amada Quattro 2.5 kW laser cutting machine.
- 3x Amada CNC press brakes.
- A powder coating track system, capable of coating single pieces of metal 4m long x 1.5m wide.
- A powder coating box oven, capable of curing items 3m².
- 2x Baileigh Industrial roll bending machines.
- 4x Welding bays, equipped for MIG, TIG, stud and spot welding.
- 2x Linishing cells.
- A dedicated assembly and packaging area.
- A fleet of vehicles.
To come and see Hitherbest along with over 140 other exhibitors and over 1000 delegates, reserve your ticket to the Made in the Midlands Expo for free today, using this link. To find out more information about the services they offer, you can visit their website here or drop them an email at [email protected] or via the telephone at 01952 632 100.