Barkley Plastics sees £1m of new contracts thanks to UK auto boom

A Birmingham-based plastics injection moulder says it has landed more than £1million of new contracts thanks to a UK automotive market that is “through the roof.”

Barkley Plastics has announced new work including interior parts and light guides for several major automotive OEMs and a rapidly expanding supercar manufacturer.

It comes after a hugely successful twelve months that has seen the firm take on 15 new staff, exceed sales targets and invest more than £500,000 on a new EDM machine, a 650 tonne injection mould press, a 420 tonne press and new cranes in preparation for handling bigger tools.

This, it says, has given it the capacity to produce larger components and to manufacture more than 50 million mouldings every year for automotive clients and customers involved in construction, electronics, medical and retail.

“We have always been a trusted supplier to the Tier Ones and car makers and that is what the business has been built on…having said that, the last eighteen months has been some of our most successful in this arena,” explained Matt Harwood, Business Development Manager at Barkley Plastics.

“Investment in the domestic auto sector has gone through the roof and we have certainly benefitted from being located close to a number of major plants. There is also a willingness to buy parts from the UK, with many of the orders we’ve secured won back from overseas.”

He continued: “When things are in the ascendancy it’s a good time to build on your strengths and we have invested significantly in a new Negri Bossi press, a new assembly line and recruiting more tool makers and apprentices.”

Employing 115 people at its Highgate factory, Barkley Plastics offers a host of manufacturing solutions including injection moulding, gas injection moulding, two shot moulding and the recently introduced in-weld mould capability.

The firm is a member of the Midlands Assembly Network (MAN), a group of nine subcontractors that share best practice and pool resources. Barkely says this has been “highly beneficial” to its recent success.