William Hughes continues to grow its manufacturing facilities in Bulgaria
28 June 2013
When William Hughes opened its new production facility in Bulgaria in 2004, it was hard to imagine that nine years later the operation would have proved so successful that the factory has expanded four-fold.
Located near Plovdiv, Bulgaria’s second city, William Hughes’ 4320 square metre, custom-built factory now employs 131 people and its scope and product capability continues to grow as new machinery and processes are added.William Hughes specialises in the manufacture of springs and bent wire assemblies. Production is split between its UK headquarters in Stalbridge, Dorset and Bulgaria, depending on the type of product and the location of the customer; for example, products requiring a higher labour content are generally channelled to Bulgaria. Torsion springs are a particular area of expertise in Plovdiv and there is additionally a strong local demand for this type of spring.
William Hughes is also an approved supplier for Johnson Controls and a major new contract for Turkey involving parts for a popular minibus, has accounted for a 20% increase in turnover. Over 45 new parts are involved, including a mixture of bent wire, springs and assemblies. Turkey is only a few hours from Plovdiv by road (414 Km) so the benefits of supplying locally are many. Other supplier customers include Fehrer, Lear and CTS, with most parts destined for the automotive market, in particular vehicle seating.
As demand for its high quality products has grown, new machinery and processes have been installed in Bulgaria to help support the UK manufacturing facility. For example, last year, four new wire forming machines were installed bringing the total in Bulgaria to 29. Robot welding capacity has been increased two-fold with 6 robots being fully utilised.
The company has also added two vertical injection moulding machines with a capacity of 120 and 250 tonnes. Traditionally, William Hughes has made clipped car seat mats but these new machines allow the seat mats to be over-moulded, dispensing with the need for clips altogether and providing an assembly that is both strong and fast to manufacture.
New finishing processes have also been installed at the factory enabling wire parts to be coated with Delta Tone and Delta Seal for corrosion protection.
William Hughes Managing Director, Max Hughes;
“Establishing our first overseas production facility was an exciting experience. We have seen a growing demand for our products from the developing local markets in Romania, Serbia and Turkey as well as the traditional markets in the UK, Poland, France and Germany. We are delighted with the continuing success of the project. With our reinvestment programme, we look forward to the continuing growth of our facilities to the benefit of both the local economy and our overall UK capability”.
Other Press Releases By This Company
- 30/08/2023 - Significant investment keeps automotive supply chain agile and just-in-time
- 27/04/2023 - Over-moulded Lumbar Structure
- 10/01/2023 - Technology investment boosts cleanroom capabilities at William Hughes
- 09/06/2022 - William Hughes is welded to success
- 13/01/2022 - New tech, new capacity & new capabilities at William Hughes
- 09/08/2021 - Insulated bus bars formed without coating damage thanks to new approach to bending
- 03/12/2020 - William Hughes goes solar with Low Carbon Dorset - saving energy costs and reducing its carbon footprint
- 12/08/2020 - Springing into action saves the day for automotive tier one
- 19/12/2019 - William Hughes boxes clever with spot welded assembly for storage tray
- 19/11/2019 - Test Point Beads Provide a Fast and Flexible Way to Insulate and Support Components on Printed Circuit Boards
- 13/08/2019 - William Hughes can now offer Electrophoretic Painting for the protection for metal parts
- 08/07/2019 - William Hughes introduces metrology services for high precision manufacturing following the acquisition of JK Metrology
- 14/03/2019 - Salt spray testing keeps a check on corrosion-resistance at William Hughes
- 25/10/2018 - Secondary processes and finishes for springs and wire components
- 27/09/2018 - Passivation explained and demonstrated
- 31/05/2018 - William Hughes uses testing to guarantee components meet endurance requirements
- 12/12/2017 - William Hughes vacuum formed trays help protect valuable parts during storage and transportation
- 11/10/2017 - William Hughes expands European operations with the acquisition of Nosag Polska Sp. z o.o. from the DEFTA Group
- 14/09/2017 - William Hughes meets new challenges for high performance spring in critical aerospace application
- 07/08/2017 - William Hughes takes the stress out of spring specification
- 22/03/2017 - Critical components cleaned to the most demanding quality standards, approvals and specifications
- 17/02/2017 - Ultrasonic cleaning comes to Southern Manufacturing & Electronics
- 13/12/2016 - William Hughes shares spring making secrets on youtube
- 12/10/2016 - William Hughes invests £1/4 million in latest welding technology to meet growing demand for automotive seat frames
- 29/06/2016 - William Hughes apprentice programme provides young people with engineering career opportunities
- 06/06/2016 - Latest 3D measurement scanner from William Hughes
- 18/02/2016 - Clean bill of health for William Hughes
- 18/01/2016 - Specialist springs from William Hughes help improve car comfort and safety
- 11/04/2014 - William Hughes celebrates 10 years of success in Bulgaria
- 21/01/2014 - William Hughes is sole supplier of specialist compression springs to Eaton Fluid Power in Havant
- 25/10/2013 - William Hughes adds strength and versatility to its wire components with new overmoulding capability
- 16/09/2013 - Coiled and ready for action
- 08/08/2013 - Wire-form & Spring specialist expands services portfolio
- 11/02/2013 - Passivation Plant reduces lead time for spring and bent wire forming
- 30/01/2013 - Plasma Welding expertise at William Hughes
- 18/01/2013 - Bent Wire from William Hughes gets you on the move
- 20/12/2012 - William Hughes Spring Technology at the heart of Deltex Blood Flow Monitor
- 07/12/2012 - Speedy wire solution to rear car seat frame challenge
- 02/11/2012 - Improved Spiral Springs from William Hughes
- 05/09/2012 - Need double torsion springs? No problem for William Hughes
- 03/09/2012 - William Hughes achieves NADCAP accreditation
- 16/07/2012 - Hughes expands Compression and Torsion Spring ranges
