Local manufacturer Glassbond is celebrating their ruby anniversary this year following 40 years of manufacturing success.
Established in 1978, Glassbond has three main product lines; producing material for lawn and crown green bowls; organic adhesives for lighting and inorganic adhesives for high temperature applications.
The St Helens based company has grown and developed over the past 40 years and is now recognised as the world’s leading independent lamp capping cement manufacturer.
In 2001, Glassbond was recognised for their success, achieving the Queen’s Award for Enterprise for Export Sales and Growth. This was followed shortly after with awards from Liverpool University and NWDA recognising excellence in research and development. In addition, they have also held 9001 and 14001 ISO accreditations since 1994 and 2004 respectively.
As well as their many sales achievements, over the past 10 years, Glassbond has replaced, upgraded or enhanced the majority of their manufacturing equipment, introduced electric Fork Lift Trucks, invested in new engineering equipment, performed IT upgrades, launched a new website and implemented safety systems developed in line with ISO 18001.
Following the retirement of Director Les Hughes in 2000, the company became wholly family owned, with Derek Randell as Chairman, Philip Randell as Managing Director and Richard Randell as Purchasing Director.
Philip Randell, Managing Director, said: “I joined the company back in 1994 as Technical Manager due to the expansion of the business, having just won a number of large contracts in North America and Indonesia.
“When I first joined the company, there were five industrial units and the turnover was half of what it is now.
“As business has grown, the manufacturing footprint has doubled in size. There has been a lot of hard work involved in growing the business through continuous investment in research and product innovation, recruitment of key personnel, extensive travel throughout Europe, North America and China and more recently greater emphasis on HR and Health and Safety system development.
“It has been interesting watching the company grow over the last 24 years and the growth still continues now. We’re developing new products all the time.”
With the lighting market rapidly changing due to the introduction of LED technology, the company’s decision to invest heavily in Research and Development has moved the company from one that was originally reliant on high volume, low cost products to one that now focuses on manufacturing high quality bespoke products in all areas of the business.
Philip added: “With new agreements recently signed with customers in China and USA, major development initiatives in place with global cement customers and the continued dominance of the lawn bowl product market, we commence our 40th year celebrations by thanking our employees past and present, our valued customers and dedicated suppliers all of whom have over the last four decades contributed to our ongoing success.
“Mirroring the words of Bill Gates on the 40th Anniversary of Microsoft, ‘we have accomplished a lot in the last 40 years, but what matters most is what we do next’.”
To find out more about Glassbond visit their website http://www.glassbond.co.uk/
