A £1m investment in a new stamping line is helping a UK sheet metal specialist take on larger projects and output.
BPL Engineering Group (BPL) has strengthened its strategic partnership with Worcester Presses by installing a 600-ton Yeh Chiun hydraulic press, one of the largest hydraulic presses the company has ever built.
The decision follows the success of a 300-ton H-frame press purchased four years ago, allowing the Kings Norton-based company to acquire a machine that offers a larger bed size (2500mmx1500mm), which Crucial for the pursuit of stampings for automotive, aerospace, railway and other sectors.
In addition to its leading maintenance and service package, Worcester Presses has installed remote monitoring to help minimise downtime by providing fast and efficient diagnostics.
“Our expertise lies in supplying stampings and assemblies to OEMs such as Jaguar Land Rover, Lotus and Aston Martin, ranging from prototype projects to series production,” explained Matt Adams, Director of Operations at BPL Engineering Group. “This complete Our services have rapidly grown sales to over £6 million, and this latest partnership with Worcester Presses gives us additional capacity and a larger world-class press to take on different types of jobs.”
He continued: “This machine was installed as part of a three-month plant re-engineering project and it allows us to target large stampings in a variety of material grades, including aluminium, mild steel, structural steel, stainless steel, yellow Copper and copper.”
Worcester Presses has a similar need for its expertise, drawing on its track record of building long-term relationships with manufacturing subcontractors across the UK.
The company, which employs 14 people at Dudley’s Crescent Park Industrial Park, has seen sales of its range of hydraulic/mechanical presses and auxiliary equipment increase by more than 50% since the lockdown was lifted.
Much of this growth has come from the company’s ability to “customize” its range of standard equipment to meet customer needs and deliver complete packages within a few months from the initial order, not to mention its extensive range of spare parts and repair services .
Russell Hartill, Managing Director of Worcester Presses, added: “The 600-ton Yeh Chiun is a number of presses that offer great power, excellent accuracy and repeatable quality, ideal for the type of work BPL Engineering Group specialises in and it begins Diversified new projects.
“Matt and his team had seen the 300-tonne performance firsthand and recognized the potential a larger press could bring them, and got in touch with our engineers to find out how we could customize the machine to meet specific requirements.
“This was all done within a few months, and then we supported the restructuring of the large factory to accommodate the new press, while maintaining the company’s supply to its domestic and international customer base.”
Post time: Feb-10-2022