The post-Brexit confidence of UK manufacturers has once again been demonstrated, as Borough Plating unveiled their new Engel 400 Twin Shot injection moulding machine.
The machine will support the production of interior trim parts, ready to be plated in-house for a new all-electric SUV vehicle from one of the world’s leading marques.
The company, which is regarded as one of the UK’s leading plastic injection moulders and chrome platers of plastics, revealed the high-tech piece of equipment after announcing it had recently secured new contracts worth around £9m.
The unveiling attracted support from Southend West MP, Sir David Amess, who was on hand to see the first components emerge after switching on the machine for the first time.
The new machine creates parts injection moulded using two different plastics to allow them to be selectively chrome plated, so fixing lugs remain flexible.
The Engel 400 will be central to the production of at least twelve different interior trim parts and will further increase Borough’s capacity to support the UK automotive supply chain, indicating sector growth amid post-Brexit uncertainty.
David Brereton, sales director at Borough Plating, said: “Although there has been a lot of discussion about the challenges the UK manufacturing and automotive sectors are facing at this moment in time, developments like these shows there’s still a lot of potential for growth and cause for optimism across the sector.
“From our point of view, the opportunity to be involved in the production of a revolutionary all-electric SUV with one of the world’s most recognised automotive manufacturers is an exciting prospect that indicates the respect we have from the biggest names in the industry.
“The scale of investment demonstrates our ongoing commitment to manufacturing only the highest quality injection moulded components, designed specifically for selective plating to ensure the interior of a top marque car is a nice place to be.”
Amess commented: “In amongst all the Brexit chatter, success stories like Borough who are winning important new contracts to secure jobs in the UK can be easily missed. This is yet another one of our innovative UK component manufacturers that are so important to the ongoing success of the global automotive industry.
“I have visited this third generation, family-owned business, a number of times and I’m always impressed by the dedication of the workforce and their commitment to delivering the highest quality chrome plated parts for some of the world’s leading car brands.
“In parliament, I work hard to champion my constituency and in particular the businesses creating growth and jobs in the region, like Borough.
“To date, Southend has received over £40m investment from Government through the South East local enterprise partnership growth deal and the 2014 city deal – it is very satisfying to see this investment reflected in the confidence of businesses like Borough.”
Brereton concluded: “We are also expecting this project to create plenty of new job opportunities, which is a fantastic achievement not only for us, but for the industry in general, considering the uncertainty that has followed since last year’s referendum.
“As one of the UK’s leading suppliers of chrome plated plastic components, we recognise the need to maintain our investment in technology to ensure we deliver the quality demanded by our clients in the UK and overseas.”
