Website www.echo-news.co.uk says plans have been submitted for an 11,463 m2 industrial unit to the south east of the planned 50-acre Southend Airport Business Park off Cherry Orchard Way, Rochford, Essex. Ipeco has not released any public statement.
Founded in 1960, Ipeco is a manufacturer of executive and crew aircraft seats, galley inserts, electronics and composites, and offers precision machining and engineering services. Of its precision machining capabilities, the company says: “Ipeco has an extensive state-of-the-art manufacturing capability which employs a wide range of systems, processes and equipment. Products manufactured by salt bath brazing include coldwalls, chassis, antennae, heat exchangers, wave guides, plenums and ducts.
“Ipeco is able to combine its brazing capability with a significant CNC precision machining operation comprising over 120 machines, including fine limit sheet metalwork with a variety of materials and gauges. We can also offer services across mechanical assembly, pressure testing, endurance, cycle, environmental testing, heat treatment, cleaning, paint finish and silk screening.”
The privately-owned company, now under third generation of family ownership, had a turnover in 2016 of £87.5m, with more than half of that going to the US.
A possible nod to this latest development was given in the 2016 annual report (signed off in April 2017), where it said under ‘Future developments’: “Development activities in support of seating contract awards for Embraer E2 and Boeing 777X aircraft will continue throughout 2017, in support of which the Group will continue to expand its manufacturing operations and enhance global customer support activities.”
Not much later, in an announcement of May last year, it revealed that it had opened Ipeco Singapore Pte Ltd, a new customer service base for South- East Asia, Australasia and the Pacific Islands and additionally stated "the Company has recently undertaken an ambitious research and development programme to enhance the passenger experience and deliver further new products to the market over the next 2-3 years".
Machinery visited the company back in May 2007.
