Leading construction fastening systems manufacturer EJOT has invested significantly in its manufacturing capacity and technical support, in a project which has more than doubled the size of its UK HQ, production and logistical facility near Leeds.
The company, which manufactures a wide range of high-performing fastening solutions for the building envelope and many other construction applications, as well as advanced engineering fasteners predominantly for the automotive industry, has increased the scale of its Sherburn-in-Elmet site to create a state-of-the-art facility tailored to the needs of the UK market, with class-leading support for customer innovation.
In addition to providing extensive new manufacturing space and a logistical control centre that will increase storage capacity by 40%, the expansion also includes a state-of-the-art upgrade to the EJOT Applitec centre – already unique in the industry.
Unlike any testing and R&D facility available here in the UK, this ‘application technology’ facility will be three times the size of the existing centre, providing a resource for multi-dimensional fastener testing and new product development in conjunction with OEMs. The testing resources available here will include two new environmental testing laboratories where the long-term performance of EJOT products can be reliably assessed.
Robert Hardstaff, Managing Director at EJOT UK said: “This investment in our UK site represents a major step forward for EJOT, giving us a unique position in the market in respect of the levels of technical, logistical and sales support we can offer, with a strengthening of our manufacturing base.
“Our ethos of ‘converting customer problems into product solutions’, both reactively and often proactively to prevent problems evolving in the first place, requires us to have the right technical resources and quality procedures in place to meet whatever challenges our customers face. Our new facilities will enable us to do this in a way that not only continues this level of support, but also reaffirms our unique positioning to the industries we now serve.”
The EJOT UK investment programme, valued in excess of £6m in 2016, was proposed and agreed well ahead of the implementation of a post-Brexit agreement, as part of its long term vision to provide market-leading support to UK customers whilst creating an EJOT Group manufacturing centre of excellence for many of its key products in Yorkshire. Rubber-stamped by the German-owned EJOT Group after the Brexit deal was reached, progress continued apace despite the impacts of the pandemic for an on-time handover.
The extended facility will create a platform to develop EJOT UK’s future workforce and give it an additional 4,500 sq. m of operational space. In addition to expanding the production of EJOT’s core range of fasteners for both the construction and engineering sectors, the extended site will include a new facility for manufacturing the LIEBIG range of heavy duty anchors– a brand the EJOT Group acquired from Finnish company Sormat in 2017.
Robert continues, “The investment programme represents so much more than just a building extension. It supports EJOT’s family business approach that drives our global strategy to continuously re-invest profits into the business and futureproof our employment needs by providing youth career opportunities in highly skilled and technical roles.”
EJOT UK has long been a firm advocate of investment in youth and currently has 15% of its UK HQ workforce benefitting from an apprenticeship programme in various formats. These apply to different areas of the business and range from technical services and quality management, through to engineering and manufacturing. Qualification goals are both vocational and degree level where participants attend college or university on a day release basis.
German headquartered EJOT GmbH, still a privately owned German family business, established its UK operations in Leeds in 1985, but it has a much longer heritage extending back to 1922. And as the EJOT Group approaches its 100th anniversary, recent investments in its plants in Poland, India, the USA, Turkey, Brazil, Mexico and China, as well as the UK, ensure the business is in excellent shape for its next era.
In addition to the construction market, EJOT provides fastening systems for applications across manufacturing and engineering, including the automotive, white goods and electrical industries. Many of the world’s leading car brands depend on EJOT fastening systems throughout their manufacture as they meet the global challenges to build stronger and build lighter.
