Colleagues who set up in business after the engineering company where they worked went out of business have seen their enterprise flourish in the Black Country.
Steve Wood and Darren Armstrong formed Grindtec Limited, which specialises in high precision grinding and machined components. They bought the machinery and assets from the administrator and took on five staff and targeted customers they had established links with.
Now four years later the business has grown and they have relocated to larger premises, taking on a 3,565 sq ft unit at Oldbury’s Springfield Estate, which is owned and managed by London and Cambridge Properties Ltd (LCP).
Steve said: “When our employer went under we were faced with being out of work in our late 40s and early 50s which limited the opportunities for finding another job. We decided to use our experience to set up and run our own business with people we had worked with over the years joining us.
“It was on a smaller scale but we knew we could carry on offering a service to our customers. Our faith in our know-how and approach has paid off and we have had to move to a bigger unit to expand.
“Our new base is great, exactly what we wanted and is well located with motorway links. It has also given us space to allow us to have a dedicated inspection department”
Grindtec specialises in the manufacture of special purpose cutting tools, insert modification and precision ground components in tool steels and tungsten carbide. Its clients come from a range of industries including, aerospace, automotive, medical, nuclear, oil and construction.
It is a key supplier to all the major insert manufacturers. Its regrind service is also available offering a quick turnaround.
The company provides a machining service in high precision optical profile grinding, internal and external cylindrical grinding, surface grinding, tool and cutter grinding, special purpose grinding, honing, polishing and brazing.
Steve added: “We are in a niche market and we do a lot of project work and bespoke tooling. We have a number of clients in the West Midlands and further afield including major national and international companies.
“We are looking to grow the business further. The economy is still a problem but we are doing well so hopefully when the economy picks up we can go along with it.”
The Springfield Estate is located just off the Birmingham Road (A457) in Oldbury and is less than two miles from Junction 2 of the M5. Three units from 5,383 to 10,913 sq ft are available for let.
Black Country-based LCP is one of the UK’s largest private owners of industrial, office and retail property. Its total commercial property portfolio runs to 14 million sq ft which is held for long term investment purposes.