Manufacturing Success in 2018

By Paul Fears | 10 January 2019

Bunting Magnetics Europe Announce Sales Growth

2018 proved to be one of our most successful years. In the twelve months, our European operation experienced 25% sales growth on 2017.

Simon Ayling outside Bunting Magnetics Berkhamsted

Simon Ayling outside the Berkhamsted facility

“We achieved a great deal in 2018,” explained our Managing Director, Simon Ayling. “The growth is a result of continued investment right across the business.”

The European operation of Bunting includes manufacturing facilities in Redditch and Berkhamsted.

The Importance of People

In October, Bunting-Berkhamsted successfully achieved the ISO45001 International Standard for occupational health and safety (OH&S). The implementation of new apprenticeship and trainee programmes will develop the next generation of engineers and skilled people. New employees have joined the Berkhamsted and Redditch teams boosting staffing levels by approximately 15%.

“Our employees are a fundamental part of our success,” explained Simon.

Modernising Manufacturing

The reconfigured manufacturing area at Berkhamsted, including the installation of new manufacturing plant, will improve efficiency and quality. The new plant includes a large grinding machine for the manufacture of 2m long SSSC Stainless Steel Magnetic Separator rotors. In addition, we have installed a high capacity lathe.

There are plans for further investment in both manufacturing plants in 2019.

Being Present In The Market

The focus on attending exhibitions and supporting overseas representatives continued in 2018. The Bunting team exhibited at 13 events across Europe. The exhibitions and conferences covered a wide range of industries including recycling, engineering, food, and plastics.

“There is no better way to gain an understanding and appreciation of an overseas market,” said Simon. “We have had tremendously successful shows in 2018, even securing orders on the stand.”

There was considerable interest in the launch of the SSSC Stainless Steel Magnetic Separator. The metal separator was on show in Germany (IFAT), CARS 18 (UK) and RWM (UK). This new addition enables the recovery of larger fragmented stainless steel.

Sales Success

Sales of Metal Detectors hit record highs in 2018. The expansion of the range opened up new markets. Metal Detectors are widely used in most process industries, with particular growth in the plastics, quarrying, food, and recycling sectors.

“Over the past two years [since the acquisition of Master Magnets] our business has evolved. The opportunities are far greater than they ever have been. We have a strong presence in the market place. This will be further developed with our plans for 2019 and beyond,” said Simon.

“This is a very exciting time for the whole Bunting group.”