Trade kitchen supplier, Howdens has unveiled a new state of the art, multi-million pound production line and extension, which aims to boost the company’s manufacturing capability and create jobs locally.
On Friday, January 27, Howden MP David Davis, and Howdens’ Chief Executive, Andrew Livingston officially opened the new high gloss kitchen door frontal line, at the company’s Howden site on Thorpe Road. Guests were welcomed to the opening ceremony with a guided tour of the new extension and they also received a presentation by Howdens’ apprentices and members of its on-call fire service. The new line measures over one km in length and is one of the largest of its type in Europe. Once fully commissioned the company will be able to manufacture over two million kitchen door frontals and décor ends in high gloss finishes to support Howdens thriving kitchen and joinery business.
The company currently imports these products from Italy, and the new line will enable more production to move to the UK, at the same quality as it can source externally but at a lower cost and reduced lead time. The new line has already created 50 high skilled jobs including machinists and engineering technicians at the site in Howden, with that number set to double when the line is up to full capacity. The company has also recently invested in a second high speed painted architrave and skirting line which more than doubles its capacity, enabling the company to service in-house the substantial increase in demand for these products.
Lee Parish, Director of Manufacturing at Howdens, said: “We are continuing to invest in increasing capacity at our two major manufacturing sites in the UK to support Howdens ambitious expansion plans in the UK but also internationally. “The new factory extension strengthens our commitment to UK manufacturing and provides our trade customers with more high-quality kitchen and joinery products at the best local price, while always being in stock.” David Davis, MP for Haltemprice and Howdens, added: “Howdens is a fantastic success story, providing quality products, and creating jobs and opportunities with this welcome investment in the region.” Howdens’ ambition is to be the UK’s leading responsible kitchen business. In January 2022, the company achieved carbon-neutral manufacturing at its key manufacturing sites in Howden and Runcorn certified by The Carbon Trust. Howdens’ manufacturing and distribution facilities also reached zero waste to landfill in 2019, and 99 per cent of all Howdens UK depot waste avoids landfill. To find out more about Howdens please visit www.howdens.com
Members of the Howdens team with MP David Davis, during the officially opening of the company’s newest line. (02-02-108 GT/EC)
