A world leading engineering firm has laid the foundation for future growth by building a new headquarters.
The new offices of Microtech Precision Ltd at Bersham Enterprise Centre, near Wrexham, were officially opened by North Wales Regional AM Aled Roberts who has long-standing links with the company which celebrated its 25th anniversary last year.
They specialise in making components used in the manufacture of aluminium drinks cans in the UK and across the globe.
The chances are if you’re drinking anything out of a can bought in the UK it will have been made using components precision engineered by Microtech.
The high tech company was founded in 1989 and now employs 17 people.
Owners Vaughan Hughes and Duncan Evans have been with Microtech from the very beginning.
They not only survived but thrived during the recession thanks to the booming drinks can industry, with their products being exported across Europe and as far afield as China.
Another staple for Microtech has been sub-contracted machining work for a variety of customers.
Turnover has increased by between 10-15 per cent every year for the past few years and has now topped £1.1 million.
After a guided tour of the new offices and the machine shop, Aled Roberts said: “I am very impressed with what I have seen and heard today.
“Their expertise was built locally and has now been recognised across the UK and worldwide.
“One of the issues we have as a country is that we’ve spent quite a few years looking at service industries and the financial sector as the drivers of the economy.
“There is increasing recognition that it’s the manufacturing sector that needs strengthening and looking at this firm, locally based and yet having the expertise to export parts across the globe.
“We should do a bit more trumpeting of these success stories. Wrexham and Flintshire have more of the manufacturing end than almost any other area in the UK so clearly they are the backbone of the economy locally.
“I think we have to ensure that the skills base is addressed within our colleges and schools because clearly there is a need locally for this engineering expertise.
“Clearly, the staff must be facing the future with more confidence on the basis that the company is investing for the future.”
Managing director Brent Evans said: “We’re delighted that Aled agreed to officially open our new offices because he was involved with the company 25 years ago and acted as our solicitor.
“The old offices were getting to the stage where they were past their sell by date so we felt we needed to invest a significant amount of money to put in some new offices at the front of the building.
“We’re constantly evolving as a company because you can’t stand still in this business.”
It was a sentiment echoed by Vaughan Hughes who said: “We engineer components used in the manufacture and printing on billions and billions of beverage cans every year which can contain anything from cola to lager to tea.
“It’s a massive industry worldwide. In this country a big percentage of the cans being printed are sitting on our mandrels so if you’re drinking a can of cola or lager in the UK, the chances are it’s been made with components manufactured here in Wrexham.
“Via another local company, we ship our parts across the UK and Europe and farther afield to places like China, Korea and Brazil.”
Duncan Evans added: “Like most companies we’re always keen to broaden our customer base and the new offices are helping us lay the foundation for future growth.
“We needed more room to house some dedicated areas for programming the Computer Numerical Control machines and specific offices for the scheduling the production software that we’ve got running now.
“The new offices are a vote of confidence in our future and will enable us to continue to innovate and grow.”
