Group dynamics - keeping toolmaking in the UK

The UK toolmaking industry has traditionally been made up of numerous small businesses and many have suffered in the face of increasing competition. But customers don't always want to turn to suppliers overseas, while novel ways of working can give UK toolmakers the edge. Four UK toolmakers have worked together on a sizeable contract to supply a large number of new mould tools to Wavin Ltd – a leading water management, plumbing, heating and drainage systems solutions provider. The four UK toolmakers Hanson Thorpe, Ryetools, ITI Manchester and Complexa Tools have, over the last two years, worked as a consortium in collaboration with their client Wavin to manufacture a range of high precision, high value single and multi-impression mould tools, which are being used to manufacture 'Hep2O' – Wavin's next generation of revolutionary push-fit plastic plumbing products. The mould tools were delivered last November. The initial idea and motivation behind creating a UK-based toolmaker consortium came from Wavin. Anxious about ensuring the high quality of its new mould tools and meeting the stringent delivery deadlines that would enable the next generation of 'Hep2O' to be launched into the market in November 2010, Wavin opted against awarding the contract to any overseas mould tool manufacturers. "We were reluctant to look to overseas manufacturing for the solution from a quality and delivery perspective," explains Warren Temperton-Ball, Wavin's toolroom manager responsible for managing and overseeing the project. "'We also recognised that the cost differential that may have once existed between manufacturing in the UK and manufacturing overseas has closed and could have been negated, once the additional on- costs for transportation and logistics had been taken into account." Image: Tools were required for these new parts - but overseas toolmakers were not favoured REASONS TO STAY LOCAL Other perceived negatives working against placing the work overseas included the need for absolute confidentiality, together with concerns over Wavin's ability to manage the project through its different phases, effectively and efficiently, thousands of miles away. All of the selected companies signed a non-disclosure agreement with Wavin to ensure confidentiality. So Wavin began looking for a more local, UK-based manufacturing solution, and the idea for a toolmaking consortium approach was born and took shape. In fact, the consortium concept was not accidental. Not wishing to 'put all of its eggs in one basket', Wavin immediately saw the benefits of 'splitting' the work between a number of UK toolmakers, rather than relying on and being 'at the mercy of' a single supplier. But to do this would mean that the individual toolmakers identified and selected would need to work collaboratively, which, in the highly competitive toolmaking sector, was unusual, if not unique. To some extent, the toolmaking companies ultimately selected to work in partnership with Wavin were self-selecting. The companies needed to have the experience and expertise to handle high precision, complex mould tools, and be able to demonstrate their ability to deliver such projects on time and on budget. They also "needed to buy in totally to the consortium concept of working together, being transparent and open, and sharing ideas and good practice", says, Mr Temperton-Ball, Following a number of preliminary meetings (as part of the selection process), Wavin determined that a consortium consisting of four UK toolmakers and Hasco-Internorm, the mould tool 'collapsing core' technology specialist, would be the optimum size. Image: Four UK toolmakers made tools to fit the bill "Once the scope and scale of the project was outlined and understood, we were excited at the prospect of becoming involved," says Stuart Hanson, director at Hanson Thorpe. "The timing of the project was good for us. We had the design and production capacity available and were confident that we could hit the tight deadlines required. The scale of the project also provided security and a predictability of work over what was increasingly looking like an economic downturn." Ray Golson, managing director at ITI Manchester, says: "We had worked with Wavin previously and were familiar with their professional methods and practices and quality procedures. And, although the project was technically demanding, we knew we had the in-house skills and experience, and the systems and processes in place to meet the quality and lead time requirements." The different mould tools were allocated to the various consortium toolmaking companies, on the basis of their estimated costs, timescales and delivery, and their in-house manufacturing capabilities. Even though the companies did, and were encouraged to, 'bid' against each other, the large number of mould tools were more or less evenly split between the companies, in terms of the number of mould tools to manufacture and their value. COUNT US IN "We didn't want, or allow, one company to become dominant, as that would have affected consortium harmony," states Mr Temperton-Ball. However, as it turned out, the higher cavity mould tools went to ITI Manchester and Ryetools, because they had the technology and experience in handling this type of work, and the smaller sized mould tools went to Hanson Thorpe and Complexa Tools. Pre-production and production 'collapsing core' tooling was supplied by Hasco, in addition to standard mould tool equipment such as bolster sets. And, according to Neil Moseley, managing director at Hasco: "To ensure high quality and consistency, and to control costs, it was important to standardise (wherever possible) mould tool design and manufacture. Our Z3600 collapsing cores were supplied to the four toolmaking companies, as was ancillary equipment such as bolster sets." Explains Darren Hugill, managing director at Ryetools: "The mould tools we manufactured [similar to the other three companies] were characterised by their high precision and complexity and, as such, had a relatively long lead time. To help us control and manage our own costs, Wavin introduced a staged payment plan, which meant that, as long as we hit 'agreed-in-advance' individual mould design and manufacturing milestones, we would be paid." The staged payment provision was also welcomed by Simon Burford, Complexa Tools' managing director: "It was an equitable arrangement that lessened the cost burden on individual consortium members. In effect, we were guaranteed staged payments per mould tool and one final payment, based on a number of criteria." Single sourcing of raw materials (steels) and single sourcing of hot halves all ensured mould consistency between the toolmaking companies, increased the purchasing power of the consortium and, as a consequence, helped to control overall costs. While it is too soon to assess the success of Wavin's next generation Hep2O product range, early indications suggest that it has taken the market by storm. What can be said, however, is that the consortium approach, and the manufacturing processes and systems employed to produce the high number of different mould tools, on time and on budget, demonstrate the benefits and the power of collaboration, as well as the innovative thinking of Wavin. The four toolmaking companies have developed good working relationships with each other and this, in addition to their geographic proximity, means that it is likely that more large volume, complex mould tool projects could be being delivered by the consortium in the future. First published in Machinery, July 2011