Bridgnorth Aluminium to create 65 jobs

Bridgnorth Aluminium is to invest £41 million in its R&D facilities and create 65 new jobs as a result. The Shropshire company will also expand its litho-sheet rolling and finishing capacity. The Bridgnorth-based business — said to be the only aluminium rolling mill in the UK for coiled products — operates a cast house, hot- and cold-rolling mills and finishing lines.

It specialises in lithographic coils for use in the graphics industry, plus foil-stock coils for use in the food and pharmaceutical industries. The company employs around 300 people and had revenues of £180 million in 2013, of which about 90% was exported. It is a joint venture, owned 75% by Elval, of Greece and 25% by UACJ Corporation of Japan.

Managing director Simon MacVicker said that the investment “will allow us to further improve our technology offering and also provide more capacity at a time when few aluminium companies wish to dedicate resources to this segment.”

Mr MacVicker added: “This segment is driven by technology; our customers are constantly evolving their products and processes in order to satisfy the demands of the downstream value chain in printing. Our new investment will support them by offering technology innovation, improved logistics and additional capacity.”