Rockwood invests to meet composite manufacturing demand

The company has also invested in new machinery, such as a Hexagon Absolute Arm, which has been instrumental in developing novel business class seats for aircraft.

Rockwood Composites is to quadruple its capacity in the next five years, increasing its factory floor space from 5,000 to over 30,000 square feet.

This growth has already started with the recent relocation to a new, bigger factory in Paignton. Rockwood has also invested in new machinery, such as a Hexagon Absolute Arm, which has been instrumental in developing novel business class seats for aircraft, and a HURCO CNC. The growth is also being provided with a new Moroccan subsidiary, which will have a footprint of 2,000 square metres, specifically for the aerospace industry.

The company is a specialist in design for manufacture and offers long run, small volume production runs. It has built a reputation in aerospace and defence and is expanding into automotive and leisure. For example, it is manufacturing cycle frames for two leading bike producers.

Its design engineers, who understand both materials properties and tooling, can effectively design for efficient manufacture. The company is currently recruiting similar, highly skilled engineers.

Mark Crouchen, Rockwood Composite's managing director, says: “Our customers want more of our design skills and manufacturing capability, and this demand is coming from new industries as well as existing markets. This is a pivotal time for the company as we have moved to much bigger premises and with our new Moroccan subsidiary.

“We are planning for huge growth and myself and my team are relishing the challenges that our customers will bring, whether that is producing seats for an aeroplane, developing struts able to withstand the largest temperature range you can imagine, designing a manufacturing process for a rotor or manufacturing a hockey stick or ice skate - it doesn't matter, we will turn our experience and expertise and deliver efficient and effective solutions in composites manufacture.”