His Royal Highness The Duke of Kent has officially opened a new cutting-edge corporate head office and centre of excellence in Poole, Dorset for BOFA International - a leading player in industrial fume and dust extraction technology.
The visit by His Royal Highness to the company’s new 12,000 sqft premises acknowledges BOFA’s remarkable success since a management buy-out in 2015.
Over the past three years, the company has grown its export markets to more than 120 countries and achieved recognition of its technological leadership through a Queen’s Award for Innovation.
The new building is home to corporate services, including customer support, marketing, product management, HR and finance, but will also house what is described as one of the world’s most advanced fume and dust extraction research and development facilities.
BOFA managing director, Tony Lockwood explained: “We are very proud to fly the flag for British manufacturing and our investment in these new facilities will enhance our ability to innovate and expand as we drive forward our ambitious plans for the future.
“Our achievement of the Queen’s Award for Innovation last year reaffirmed to me the importance of the company’s core values of innovation, customer service and support for our people in the implementation of our strategic plans to meet growing worldwide demand for our technology.”
BOFA is one of the fastest growing businesses in Dorset, employing more than 250 people in the design and production of fume and dust extraction systems that remove harmful airborne contaminants associated with industrial processes.
The new building increases the company’s footprint in Poole by 25% and includes an R&D facility to support the work of BOFA’s 14-strong specialist team of chartered engineers and technicians.
This technical excellence was acknowledged through the Queen’s Award for Innovation in 2017 for the company’s development of its Intelligent Operating (iQ) platform – a ‘world first’ that reportedly brings new levels of monitoring, analytics and control to extraction system performance.
In addition to its UK investment, the company has opened a new office in Germany, added a business development function in Poland and significantly enhanced its operation in the US.