Pictured above: (l-r) Rodger Cooper (Manufacturing Advisory Service - West Midlands) and Paul Edwards (Clamason)

The boss of a leading pressings specialist in the Black Country has praised the impact of the Manufacturing Advisory Service - West Midlands (MAS-WM) after seeing his business diversify into the medical sector and post successful annual results despite the economic downturn.

Philip Clarke, Managing Director of Clamason Industries, believes the strategic and financial support received has been crucial in offsetting the difficulties of recent years and in boosting performance, increasing productivity and opening up new product markets.

The company, which employs 100 people at its 65,000 sq ft site in Kingswinford and a further twenty at its factory in Slovakia, is set to turnover £11m in 2010, with the possibility of taking on more staff to cope with new contracts across its extensive customer base.

"We've had to evolve massively over the last five years and part of our success is being able to identify new opportunities and how we can transfer our core strengths and apply them to new areas," explained Philip, whose father Bob founded the business back in 1947.

"It takes a lot of time and money to diversify, especially if sales are volatile and market prices are diminishing. That's why the help we've had from MAS-WM has been so instrumental.

"Working with specialist adviser Rodger Cooper, we completed a synchronisation project to install and commission a second line to expand our capacity for producing the springs used in the 'Solostar' insulin pen. The installation also gave the ability to offer 100% quality inspection through the use of state-of-the-art in-line cameras."

He continued: "Our annual sales for this project alone have risen from £800,000 to £1.5m over the past 12 months, with the potential for even higher turnover in the next two to three years."

Clamason's ability to offer complete project management for complex pressings has seen its customer base grow considerably, with the firm now boasting blue chip clients in the consumer electronics, power distribution and medical sectors.

Automotive remains its biggest marketplace, with its TS16949 quality accreditation making it a valuable partner to first tier suppliers, such as Delphi and Visteon. It currently manufactures anything from parts for engine control units and brackets for cabling to heat sinks and passenger safety equipment. 

Paul Edwards, Technical Director, picked up the story:

"We've invested heavily in the new presses and other equipment to improve the service we can offer. As well as brand new projects, this has also resulted in customers transferring up to 500 sets of existing tooling to us as they either out-source their in-house manufacturing or reduce their supply base.

"This has been another area where MAS-WM has been of great assistance. In addition to having Rodger on hand as a sounding board, we have also been able to bring in industry experts to help with productivity improvements in our cells, implementing new purchasing systems and gaining new quality approvals for our growing medical range."

Clamason is the 3000th company in the West Midlands to have tapped into MAS-WM's in-depth support, which ranges from dedicated business reviews and process improvement consultancy to specialist assistance with sourcing, workforce development and launching new products.

The support body, which is part funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), also has a special focus on advanced manufacturing and low carbon as it aims to provide the region's manufacturing base with the expertise to compete in the global marketplace.

"We've been making a difference in manufacturing across the region since 2002. Our work has added a massive £500m in total to company turnovers and more recently safeguarded over 4000 jobs," explained Rodger Cooper, Specialist Manufacturing Adviser at MAS-WM.

"Our work with Clamason is a great example of how we can add value to a world class manufacturer and the benefits are there for all to see with the company winning new work and creating jobs in the Black Country."