Colleagues who set up in business after the engineering company where they worked went out of business have seen their enterprise flourish in the Black Country.
Steve Wood and Darren Armstrong formed Grindtec, which specialises in high precision grinding and machined components, after buying machinery and assets from its administrator and taking on five employees.
Now four years later the business has grown and they have relocated to larger premises, taking on a 3,565 sq ft unit at Oldbury’s Springfield Estate, which is owned and managed by London and Cambridge Properties (LCP).
Mr Wood said: “When our employer went under we were faced with being out of work in our late 40s and early 50s which limited the opportunities for finding another job. We decided to use our experience to set up and run our own business with people we had worked with over the years joining us.
“It was on a smaller scale but we knew we could carry on offering a service to our customers. Our faith in our know-how and approach has paid off and we have had to move to a bigger unit to expand.
“Our new base is great, exactly what we wanted and is well located with motorway links. It has also given us space to allow us to have a dedicated inspection department.”
Grindtec specialises in the manufacture of special purpose cutting tools, insert modification and precision ground components in tool steels and tungsten carbide. Its clients come from a range of industries including, aerospace, automotive, medical, nuclear, oil and construction.
It is a key supplier to all the major insert manufacturers. Its regrind service is also available offering a quick turnaround.
The company provides a machining service in high precision optical profile grinding, internal and external cylindrical grinding, surface grinding, tool and cutter grinding, special purpose grinding, honing, polishing and brazing.
