Merseyside manufacturer Lattimer is reporting a doubling of export sales to Australia in the last year.
It comes just after a special visit from the British High Commissioner to Australia His Excellency Paul Madden (see notes to editors). Mr Madden travelled to the precision machinist as part of a UK Trade & Investment tour of the North West and East Midlands.
Lattimer managing director Mark Hailwood led a guided tour of the factory which makes more than 20,000 component parts – predominantly for the bottled glass manufacturing industry.
Mr Hailwood explained the importance of Australia to his business as an emerging exports hub to the broader Asia Pacific Rim.
He said exports accounted for more than 80pc of Lattimer’s total sales, with more than 5pc coming from Australia. Mr Hailwood added that sales in the region had doubled to £500,000 in the last 12 months.
“It was a privilege to open our doors to such a high profile guest,” he said. “The commissioner takes an extremely active role in promoting UK business in Australia as well as helping to drive trade and connect firms between the two regions.
“We were able to communicate the strong progress we have been making in Australia through the supply of component parts to manufacturers in Melbourne, Adelaide, Brisbane and Sydney. We have enjoyed further success in Auckland, New Zealand. This region holds great future potential for Lattimer and acts as a gateway to the Southeast Asian market, where we have seen recent success in the Philippines and Indonesia.”
Mr Madden’s tour saw him meeting with more than 40 companies in three days to promote the opportunities in the Australian market.
Mr Hailwood said the group’s Lattimer Glass Services division, based in Birmingham, is also seeing growing demand in Australia. This part of the business focuses on maintenance, rebuild and repair of machines and equipment used in the manufacture of glass containers.
“Due to the high labour costs in the Australian market, many manufacturers have lower staff numbers. This can be an issue when machines are in need of maintenance or repair, as staff can be dragged from their usual duties to carry out the work. Our Lattimer Glass Services division provides an option to draft in a highly experienced team of engineers to carry out complex work with speed and efficiency. This minimises lost production and maximises resources helping to save time and cash.
“Following the high commissioner’s visit we aim to continue to build on our successful relationship with UKTI, which has proved integral to our success overseas. We have been able to tap into its extensive knowledge and resource base, as well as connect directly with representatives on the ground in the territories we are targeting.”
For more information contact Mark Hailwood on +44 (0)1704 535040 email Mark.Hailwood@lattimer.com or visit the website www.lattimer.com
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Notes to editors
His Excellency Paul Madden
His Excellency Paul Madden has been British High Commissioner to Australia since January 2011.Prior to this he was British High Commissioner in Singapore from February 2007. A career diplomat, he was previously managing director at UK Trade and Investment (2004-2006), responsible for co-ordinating and implementing international trade development strategies to support companies across a wide range of business sectors.
As assistant director of information at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (2003-2004) he was responsible for public diplomacy policy, including managing the FCO funding of the BBC World Service, the British Council and the Chevening Scholarships programme. He led the team responsible for the award-winning UK pavilion at the Aichi Expo in Japan 2005.
Lattimer Group
Lattimer has a £10m turnover and is the largest manufacturer in Southport, UK. It is a globally renowned precision machinist, making a massive range of high quality component parts for the manufacturing/engineering sectors. It has a sister facility in Vineland, New Jersey, US. It employs around 120 people at both sites. In 2013 Lattimer set up a new business in Brierley Hill, West Midlands to offer skilled service and repair facilities to the glass container industry. Exports account for 80pc of all sales. Lattimer works heavily in the glass sector. It is one of the world’s most highly skilled and experienced manufacturers of parts and accessories for the glass container industry. The firm has expertise in a number of CNC (computer numerical control) machining techniques including milling, grinding, mill-turning and turning. These disciplines enable it to make in excess of 20,000 different component parts. It is keen to drive growth outside the glass sector, targeting marine, offshore, nuclear, automotive and defence contracts.