Midlands Industrial Glass in central England has made strong progress following a major investment programme, which included support from Birmingham-based venture capitalist Midven.
The specialist ma…
Midlands Industrial Glass in central England has made strong progress following a major investment programme, which included support from Birmingham-based venture capitalist Midven. The specialist manufacturer of glass components has strengthened its management team with the appointment of a new non-executive chairman and the purchase of high-tech equipment. The firm began its expansion three years ago, resulting in a move to a purpose-built production facility in Smethwick. The firm now employs 50 people and aims to double its GBP 5 million turnover in the next five years. It has already spent GBP 3 million and will spend another GBP 500,000 on equipment to expand capacity following the management buy-out (MBO) from Kenmore Group which was completed for an undisclosed sum. With the backing of Midven, managing director Alan Taylor, production director Tony Gardner and operations director Glenn Bicknell carried out the MBO and continued their growth plans. Lee Noble, a chartered accountant with many years experience in acquisitions, mergers and MBOs, has become the new non-executive chairman. Midland Industrial Glass has added a Schiatti straight line edger, facilitating the manufacture of components for television stands, shop fitting, leisure equipment and a wide range of other applications. The company, which is certified to BSI and ISO9001 standards, also specialises in precision glass engineering with short lead times for the furniture and electronics industries as well supermarket display units. Components made by Midland Industrial Glass are incorporated into the products of companies such as Sony, JVC and Toshiba. Mr Taylor said: “We are delighted to have Lee on board”. “This further demonstrates our intention to continue our business development programme”. “We have invested more than GBP 3 million over the last three years and we recognise that we need to continue to bring in the best people across all levels of the business to continue our success story”. Midven, which two years ago committed GBP 250,000 of investment from the Advantage Growth Fund, has always had confidence in MIG“s future, said investment manager Nicholas Moate. “We have been delighted to watch MIG“s progress, which has not only led to further orders from existing customers, but also to an increase in the number of customers and range of their activities”.