Lincolnshire-based SL Engineering Ltd — a manufacturer of specialised rigid tube assemblies, complex fuel manifolds, core engine pipes and flexi-metallic rigid pipes used in some of the world’s most demanding fuel, hydraulic and other critical fluid conveyance applications — has joined the Government-supported industry-led Sharing in Growth (SiG) business transformation programme.

The company, which has a factory near Grantham, has experienced 87% growth in the last three years and has done particularly well in the aerospace sector, where its customers include Rolls-Royce, Eaton Aerospace, Safran Aerosystems, Kawasaki and GKN. With the aim of increasing its turnover from almost £6 million to over £12 million by 2023, the company applied for SiG’s support to ensure that it can deliver this growth and successfully compete to
win more new business.

Joint managing director Shaun Stevenson (www.sl-engineering.co.uk) said: “We’ve worked hard and invested heavily in business systems, machinery and people to achieve this phenomenal growth, but — like most UK supply chain companies — we face fierce competition from low-cost countries.

At the same time, we are dealing with the challenges of doubling in size, while ensuring that we maintain our existing customer relationships, so we recognised that it was time to scale up and join SiG in order to undertake a total business transformation.”

Among the first priorities for SL Engineering on the SiG programme will be to create a ‘lighthouse cell’ for one of the largest-volume product lines.

This will enable the company to support the implementation of world-class productivity standards, which can then be shared across other production cells in the business.

There will also be a focus on supply chain management, cost reduction, cash flow and increased machining efficiency.

This will be supported by structured data gathering and analysis, plus engaging the workforce through effective communication and involvement to ensure that, despite increasing the head count by 60% to more than 80 people, the whole team can become involved to support change and expansion.

With SiG’s support, SL Engineering will also be looking at various options to expand its capacity. Companies interested in joining the SiG programme should visit the Web site (www.sig-uk.org/apply).