Yorkshire Manufacturers Build Lasting Partnership Through MIY Networking

Members of Made in Yorkshire ROCOL and Salamander Fabrications, based in Wakefield and Huddersfield, have partnered with each other after meeting at a MIY networking event. Both members say being part of the group creates a community of like-minded manufacturers, opportunities to share best practices, and builds ‘robust’ relationships that help shorten the supply chain. 

ROCOL held a Made in Yorkshire breakfast morning last year in September, the two manufacturers got talking after ROCOL - industrial lubricants manufacturer was looking for a new supplier for their lubrication storing units. Salamander Fabrications - sheet metal fabricators were a perfect fit after they discovered the firm offered high-quality products and were situated close by. Alan Rankin, UK Sales Director at ROCOL, said: 

“The service from Salamander Fabrications has been excellent, even with the difficulties the pandemic has caused. It really has been a top-class experience with their bespoke services.”

Salamander has been producing stainless steel safety stands with additional cabinet storage for ROCOL in order for them to store their high-quality lubricants for the food industry. The initial order has been for 100 cabinets and 20 have already been delivered to the firm. ROCOL plans to continue working with Salamander beyond this collaboration, Alan continued:

“We definitely see ourselves working with them in the future because of the quality and service they provide.” 

One of the massive benefits of collaborating with businesses locally is the convenient opportunities to see products physically, and how they can be improved by a potential supplier. 

Salamander visited ROCOL in order to look at their original product, they then reversed engineered the early design making improvements and additions in line with ROCOL’S requirement with their 3D design capabilities. ROCOL decided to go ahead with the firm once realizing the skills and equipment they had available. Simon Shirtliffe, the Sales Estimator at Salamander, said:

“As ROCOL is closely situated to us, we were able to tailor our skills to the customer’s needs. This means we could produce the cabinets as quickly or as slowly as they required, this is a real perk of shortening the supply chain.”

Simon explained how the Made in Yorkshire breakfast morning has been a massive contributor to the firm’s collaboration and that these events create a community-like feel amongst fellow manufacturers within the region. He continued: 

“The Made in Yorkshire breakfast mornings give manufacturers like ourselves a platform to network and share best practices, much needed in challenging times like these especially. Meeting with these people brings about solutions to problems that many others may be experiencing. Collaborating locally is also a major benefit to reducing carbon footprint ” 

Alan from ROCOL added:

“Without attending the breakfast morning and looking through the members’ directory to find out more about Salamander, we may not have built the robust relationship we have with them. It is important that firms like ourselves try to keep work within the region as much as possible to support local jobs.” 

Contact ROCOL or Salamander Fabrications today by heading to their microsites.