igus expands UK headquarters to boost engineering services

The company, which employs 110 people in the UK, specialises in the production of sophisticated plastic components and sub-assemblies, including bearings, linear axes, energy chains, cables, components for robots and materials for 3D printing.

Matthew Aldridge, managing director, says: "By listening closely to the needs of our customers throughout the UK, we have continuously developed the range of products and services we offer and this has led to successive years of double-digit growth in our turnover. As UK industries embrace ever more efficient manufacturing methods, we have seen particularly strong demand for ready-assembled packages that can be quickly and cost-effectively deployed on site. As a result, we reached the limit of our available space and rather than moving to new premises we opted to expand, which gives everybody more space in which to work. If business levels continue to grow at their current rate we will need to recruit more employees, which this new open workspace enables us to do."

Open-plan engineering

Unlike many manufacturing environments, igus operates in an open-plan workspace, which is designed to encourage employee engagement, collaboration and sharing of ideas. Almost 20 different nationalities are represented within igus' diverse workforce. The company also runs a number of initiatives to support young engineers, including an apprenticeship programme and provision of products to students and researchers working on projects ranging from hyperloop and robotics to motor racing and medicine.

For more information about igus, go to www.igus.co.uk.