A FIRM making furniture panels and components is expanding – by moving its Huddersfield operations to Elland.
Decorative Panels Holdings Ltd is transferring its components business from Crosland Road, Oakes, and Grove Street, Longwood, to focus activities at Lowfields Business Park.
The group, with a total workforce of 320, already has a 96,000sq ft unit at Lowfields, which houses its head office and laminates subsidiary.
The Huddersfield business and its 90 employees will move into a 175,000sq ft unit at Lowfields, which Decorative panels has bought and which was formerly occupied by Carrington Wire, which ceased production last year.
Another subsidiary, Decorative Panels Furniture Ltd, based at Thornaby on Teeside, is not affected.
Group managing director Guy Metcalfe said it was planned to transfer the Huddersfield operations in January next year following refurbishment of the newly-acquired Lowfields unit.
Both Huddersfield sites have already gone on the market.
He said: “We are moving for all the right reasons – because we are expanding and we need the space to grow into.
“The company has grown year-on-year for the past 25 years and it is good to be able to report manufacturing success.
“It would have been nice if there was more industrial space available in Kirklees, but to bring our components side within walking distance of our head office and next to our laminated products business makes perfect sense.”
The 70,000sq ft factory and offices at Oakes and the 46,000sq ft premises at Longwood are being offered for sale by Hanson Chartered Surveyors on behalf of Decorative Panels.
Offers in the region of £1.4m are being sought for the Oakes premises, standing on a two-acre site close to the junction with New Hey Road.
The Longwood site, which occupies more than three acres has an asking price of £1.25m.
Mark Hanson, of Hanson Chartered Surveyors, said: “We have already had an offer on Crosland Road, which we are working on at the moment.
“Both sites have come to the market as the summer break approaches, so we will have to see what interest develops.
He said: “There is not much industrial space for sale on the market at the moment, so we hope these properties will create some interest.”
The privately-owned Decorative Panels Group traces its origins to 1907 and grew out of its business as a cabinet maker and coffin manufacturer.
Mr Metcalfe said: “We work hard to sell the British ‘badge’ and while we have been assisted by the weakness of the pound, which makes it harder for people to import, we compete on service and quality.”
The group supplies laminates to furniture manufacturers, flat-pack furniture to high street retailers and parts for kitchens.
