Corus Panels

Source: Manufacturing Digital

Date :06/05/2008 15:59:10

Corus Panels and Profiles, part of Corus Group, is growing rapidly. Exec talks to general manager Daniel Pillai

Written by Jane Fisher and Produced by Kiron Chavda

UK-based Corus Panels and Profiles is looking for 70 to 80 percent growth this coming year. With a new facility opening in Shotton and investment ongoing in two existing facilities, the company, which is part of the Corus Group, is expecting to increase its volumes significantly, according to general manager Daniel Pillai.

“At the moment our annual turnover is approximately £85 million, but on the panels side of our business, we are hoping to increase volumes to deliver 70 to 80 percent growth,” he says. “This is an area of business that is growing rapidly for us, and we have made these significant recent investments is our capacity.”

The history of Corus Panels and Profiles goes back to 1963, with the founding of Precision Metal Forming (PMF), and 1971 with the launching of European Profiles.

Following the acquisition of PMF and European Profiles by British Steel and the later Anglo-Dutch merger of British Steel with Hoogovens in 1999, Corus Panels and Profiles was established to provide integrated quality metal cladding and structural decking products to the UK’s building industry.

“Today Corus Panels and Profiles is part of the Corus Building Systems division of the group,” explains Pillai. “We operate fairly autonomously but obviously enjoy the support of the group in terms of strategic investment and business development.”

A comprehensive range

Corus Panels and Profiles offers a comprehensive range of building envelope systems, focusing on ease of installation, performance, quality and providing integrated systems-based solutions rather than components.

An expert with leading technical capability, it provides both factory insulated and built-up engineered roofing, cladding and façade solutions for ultimate design flexibility.

The company serves three main building sectors - the industrial sector (agricultural, distribution and commercial buildings), non-domestic (leisure, health, education, retail and public sector) and now developing solutions to the offsite/modular sector of residential market.

“We work with multi-national customers as well as SME’s. Last year, for example, we had significant contracts with retail outlets such as Tesco, Sainsbury and Morrison’s. We also worked with the likes of Travis Perkins and Focus DIY,” says Pillai. “We have also been involved in some high profile projects such as Manchester United’s Old Trafford Football Stadium.”

Until 2006, the north-east and north-west corners of the renowned stadium (the country’s largest club ground) were open and incomplete, interrupting the “flow” of the structure’s lines and reducing the crowd capacity. By building on these open corners, access could be improved and Old Trafford’s capacity could be increased by 8,000 to a total of 76,000; furthermore, extra hospitality facilities could be added, including executive boxes, dining suites and conference/event spaces.

Building work began in 2004 and the two quadrants were completed in August 2006. Pre-finished steel products from Corus had already been used to great effect in the expansion of Old Trafford over the last decade, and the company also supplied material for the cladding of the new extensions.

“We work on a range of projects for different customers but in terms of sheer volume, distribution and logistics has been the biggest area for us. In the future, however, we see opportunities for our products in the modular/offsite sector in addressing the need for affordable and sustainable homes,” says Pillai. “The residential market is going down a more modular route now, with more construction being carried out off-site.”

A strong future

Currently, Corus Panels and Profiles’ manufacturing takes place at two locations, in Tewkesbury and Ammanford, South Wales. The new £6.5 million site at Shotton will focus on producing insulated roof panels.

“Once we are up and running in June, we should be able to produce some one million square metres per shift per annum at Shotton,” says Pillai. “With three shifts working round the clock, we’ll have a capacity of three million square metres of roof per annum on the Shotton Roof Line in addition to existing capability of three million square metres per annum of roof and wall panels at the Ammanford Lines and eight million square metres of profiling and decking at Tewkesbury.”

He continued: “We are also investing in our Ammanford site by increasing the automation of our existing lines. We spent £0.5 million last year and will be spending more this year. We are also investing in Tewkesbury - where we are bringing in new flooring products by extending our ComFlor range.”

Product development takes place at Corus Panels and Profiles in partnership with customers, suppliers, other members of the construction industry and universities.

Recent new launches include new coating system Colorcoat HPS 200 Ultra, which is offered with a 40-year guarantee.

The company’s Colorcoat range offers pre-finished steel products and services covering all aspects of metal envelope design, specification and construction. These have been comprehensively tested and enhanced to offer superior durability and aesthetics.

Corus Panels and Profiles is also proud of its new Platinum Warranty concept. This covers the building envelope and all the elements included for up to 30 years, taking a project from specification through to completion and beyond.

The Platinum Warranty is completely free of charge and extends to cover installation for twelve years, including all products manufactured by approved supply chain partners and installed by approved contractors.

The company is also forward thinking in its environmental policy and is taking significant steps to reduce its carbon footprint. “We have reformulated our insulation systems to deliver a more environment friendly solution and have moved a lot of our transportation from the roads on to rail,” says Pillai. “We are also about to invest in a new photovoltaic product and are looking at the possibility of harnessing the energy from the waste we generate and feeding it back into the grid.”

He adds: “At the moment we have a number of exciting plans on track. We intend to grow organically from here and plan to focus on our new production, products and the Platinum system in the future.”