Sussex Manufacturer Invests £550k in Expansion

A Sussex-based manufacturer and supplier of specialist rubber grommets has invested in a new production and distribution centre with the support of £550,000 from Lloyds Bank.

Grommets Ltd manufactures thousands of moulded rubber products and bespoke items for use in electrical engineering and manufacturing, covering wires and cables or protecting sharp edges. The business supplies over 8,000 firms across a wide range of industries, from wind farms to the rail industry, with clients including Thales, Unipart Rail and the Fourth Bridge.

As demand from renewable sectors increases, the firm is producing more products for use in solar panels and batteries for electric vehicles.

To cope with the increasing demand, the business has decided to increase its footprint by nearly a third. Construction of the purpose-built facility in Henfield, which sits alongside its existing manufacturing unit on Grommets’ half-an-acre site, was supported by Lloyds Bank and help will enhance the firm’s productivity.

Grommets’ storage and distribution offering has now consolidated from a number of small units into one, boosting efficiency between the departments and reducing lead times for customers.

Four charging points have also been installed at the new HQ for its fleet of EVs while the business is exploring plans to add solar panels to the roof of the 3,918 sq ft building to reduce its emissions further.

Jo Boorsma, managing director at Grommets Ltd, said: “Our new facility is the culmination of three decades’ of hard work, as we’ve continued to expand our operations, capacity and client base. To be in a position where we needed more space to grow is a fortunate one and I’m glad Lloyds Bank stepped up to help us achieve that.

“We’re eponymous with the industry and as a result, clients look to us to deliver market-leading quality and innovation. Our new facility helps us do all this and more, and I can’t wait to see what the future has in store for us, particularly as we grow into supporting new wind farms and EV battery manufacturing.”

Andy Boreham, relationship manager at Lloyds Bank, said: “Growing a business relies on operations flowing smoothly and finding efficiencies where possible. Grommets’ new facility is exactly what will help them achieve this.

“Embarking on a new build can be daunting, but the benefits to the business are enormous and are well-worth the investment. Grommets, for example, will be able to reduce its energy bills, boost productivity and improve talent retention and attraction as a result of a modern new workplace. These are three crucial ways of increasing resilience and accelerating growth in spite of headwinds.”