Amazon Filters

Source: Energy Digital

Date :03/07/2008 16:19:10

A Great British success

Written by Ian Armitage and Produced by Alex Smith

Specialists in liquid filtration equipment for process industries, Camberley-based independent manufacturer Amazon Filters Ltd UK has quite a story to tell. In a little over two decades it has become a Great British success, designing and manufacturing one of the most extensive ranges of liquid filtration equipment on the market.

“We are filtration specialists,” says Jeff Kirby, 46, Amazon’s sales director. “Our expertise is unsurpassed and we are proud to count some of the UK and world’s leading companies from the pharmaceutical, automotive, petrochemical, and other process industries as our customers and partners.”

Founded in 1985, the manufacturer is committed to providing quality products and services, aiming to exceed expectations in ever changing environments. It was formed by engineer Mike Pizzey, who remains the company’s Managing Director, and by drawing on his experience, it has grown rapidly: “We started as a stockist and distributor, but quickly launched our own manufactured product range in 1986,” says Kirby. “This was followed by even greater expansion and we today have a reputation for supplying one of the largest ranges of filter housings available on the market.”

Amazon continues to expand in terms of turnover, facilities, people and market share. It is also beginning to establish itself worldwide through distribution partners.

“We have achieved excellent compound annual growth and are proud that we have been profitable throughout our existence,” says Neil Pizzey, Manufacturing Director.

“Over the last 18 months we have had fantastic growth,” adds Kirby. “Last year we grew 33 percent over the previous year, which was a fantastic achievement.”

Over the years, Amazon’s profile has grown dramatically and it has developed a number of excellent contracts. The pair agrees, though, that this is not the secret behind its success: “Yes, we came up with some good contracts, but working towards it over the last few years has been the investment into Amazon’s infrastructure and in facilities over the past 12 months

“We’ve doubled our available space, investing in excess of £1.2 million in building infrastructure and the manufacturing plant.”

Amazon Filters recently completed the expansion of the new pleating and assembly room at its main production plant in Camberley. Equipped with the very latest thermal end capping system, the new facility is designed to achieve a very fast weld without compromise to the products’ integrity.

“This is a great step forward and one that will benefit clients,” says Pizzey, who confesses that while Amazon is profit orientated, it is committed to investing back into building long term sustainable growth.

Demanding customers

Amazon’s demanding customer-base requires the company to “keep pace with product development and the industry,” according to Pizzey, who admits the company has to “work hard to meet a number of demands.”

He explains that Amazon has never been one to stand still and has instead “developed [its] manufacturing”. Pizzey is responsible for getting products out on time and with the right quality standards, as well as development of Amazon’s next generation of products and processes, so is very aware of customers with exacting expectations. “We are committed to our customers and to meeting their exacting demands,” he adds.

This commitment to the customers has enabled the company to become a successful supplier of choice.

Unsurprisingly, the highly demanding oil and gas industry sees Amazon as a valued partner. It has a growing reputation for manufacturing filters used in oil production and refinery applications, which are many and varied.

“We have particular strength in the design and manufacture of filter housings for the safety critical demands of the Oil and Gas industry,” says Kirby.

The pair agrees that the oil and gas industry is exciting, and it is “still going through tremendous growth,” explains Kirby. “One can see there is a lot of development and prospecting for new fields. In those areas of development there is demand for the high specification filtration products that we are now producing. These products have been validated and proven on a number of projects, so we are very excited about the future.”

He has every reason to be excited as, according to Pizzey, Amazon has “extensive experience in the manufacturing of vessels in Duplex and Super-Duplex stainless steels, and adhere to oil and gas industry regulation schemes.”

Pizzey goes on to tell Exec that Amazon’s design team is “fully aware” of the increasing technical demands of pressure vessel design codes. It is easy to see then why it is such a popular choice.

“Not only that,” adds Kirby, “we demonstrate our ability to deliver on time and to budget.”

He explains that while clients are challenging, their demands are not necessarily “as well defined as you might expect.” As a result, he says, “you need to be flexible and able to liaise with the clients. You need to be able to meet with them, discuss what they need and then come up with a solution rather than saying ‘this is the answer’.

“We believe some of our more traditional competitors give a standard answer, whereas we work closely with clients to develop the solution they want and one that is suitable for their needs.

“We might tell them something is not possible, but we also advise them what is and therefore arrive at a product, which might be quite similar, but has been engineered to meet their individual demands.”

Amazon intends to continue growing in the offshore oil and gas industry, as well as other sectors, having demonstrated its worth to a number of major clients.

A decreasing pool of qualified resources in the oil and gas industry is certainly an encouraging sign. “Because of a lack of resource, there is a need from that industry to have filters and equipment that demands less maintenance or maintenance that is easier to carry out within their budget constraints,” says Kirby. “So our requirement is to build filters that will give longer life and be easier to service.”

“We already have a reputation for that and are meeting the challenges to service the demand of the customer,” adds Pizzey.

Clear vision

Amazon’s future plan is clear: it intends to be recognised worldwide as a name synonymous with high quality, well engineered solutions to filtration problems.

“We are committed to achieving this aim, and we strive for excellence in the key areas of product quality and performance, customer service, delivery and application knowledge to help us achieve these goals,” says Kirby.

“The secret to our success is our ability to meet the customers’ needs,” he adds. “We also have a flexible sales approach and will adapt our products to meet client-specific demands.”