Sheffield based Neville Roe Industries (NRI) specialises in high quality grinding machining and hard chrome electroplating. Flexibility and responding to customers needs have allowed NRI to successfully grow their business in a niche market.
Due to the specialist chemicals NRI uses, the location of the factory next to the River Don and upcoming environmental legislation the management decided that a longer term strategic plan was required that would address issues affecting the company in the future.
Until that point the factory environment had evolved, driven, in the main, by the short term requirements of the growing business.
Spencer Roe Managing Director of Neville Roe Industries picks up the story “We were planning the long-term future for the company and looking into environmental and safety issues we might need to address. I initially invited E9 to undertake a strategic review. This was helpful on its own, putting various issues into context”.
E9 highlighted a number of areas for NRI to consider, suggesting a priority order and the options available to address opportunities and mitigate areas of risk. Working with NRI an integrated strategy was developed introducing major changes to the factory layout with a view to improving operational efficiency and eliminating areas of environmental concern.
E9 also introduced NRI to potential areas of funding including the NAMTEC BAT programme where Neville Roe Industries were able to access funding to cover consultancy.
Dr. John R. Trainor Managing Director of E9 said “Central to the business issues Neville Roe Industries faced, were factory layout and work flow. In parallel to this the site needed to lower its potential for hazardous incidents from medium to low risk. A management decision to grow the business would bring the site into regulatory control and management needed to understand the possible impacts”.
Marius van der Colff, Sheffield Office Manager continued “‘Killing two birds with one stone’ became our objective and it became apparent that with careful design these objectives would blend to produce a best long-term solution to the issues of manufacturing and environmental risk control.”
The electroplating was collected together and placed in a secondary contained area over a high quality concrete floor. This area had high overhead clearance ensuring the best handling capability for work. This work has become the cornerstone of the action plan to green the company. NRI is now working with E9 putting the finishing touches to its environmental management system using Evolve14k1 software and is expecting to gain accreditation under ISO14001 in the near future.
Spencer Roe concluded “NAMTEC funding has been very helpful. This type of assistance makes a decision to bring in outside assistance easier to make as the financial risk are removed. Overall the programme has been very beneficial.”
Notes
Neville Roe Industries, based in Liverpool Street Sheffield, is a second generation family business specialising in high quality grinding machining and electroplating. The company specialises in hard and micro-crack chrome finishes of large components. Neville Roe Industries undertakes both sub-contract manufacturing and refurbishment work.
NAMTEC is a not for profit organisation established to increase the competitiveness of the UK metals industry. Services include a technical helpline, signposting to the science base and project management. NAMTEC is financed by the Department of Trade and Industry, Yorkshire Forward and the European Union’s Objective One Programme.
E9 Limited operates from bases in Coventry and Sheffield, offering a range of industrial consultancy products and services. E9 supports industrial and manufacturing companies through development and change by implementing continuous improvements to company operations through a range of management and technical products and services.
