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Discover a history in aluminium reaching back
over 45 years…
Eltherington, the company, was founded in 1960 although
the seed was planted 7 years earlier in 1953. At that
time James Edward Eltherington (Ted to everyone), a
Hull-born sole trader, was dealing in foreign hardwoods.
Much of the business was in supplying timbers for trawlers
operating in what was then a prosperous fishing industry
on both banks of the River Humber.
Long-leaf pitch pine
for decking and mahogany for pound boards was extensively
used in those times. However
there were disadvantages of wood in a fish environment – it
was difficult to wash down, keep clean, heavy, expensive
and time consuming to install.
In 1957 Ted obtained
a patent for pound boards made from aluminium. The
trawler companies soon saw the
advantages of this lighter, more hygienic and robust
material and began replacing the timber with aluminium
as a necessity. This then lead to the company building
up stocks of the metal and creating a new range of
market opportunities for substituting timber products
for aluminium.
Caravan companies, traditionally working
in plywood sheets for exterior panelling also saw advantages
of
aluminium sheet – it retained the light weight
needed but was waterproof, rot-proof and robust. They
began to order sheets as standard sized in plain mill
finish for a short while until the demand necessitated
the need to supply sheet cut to size for dozens of
caravan models.
The potential and demand for aluminium
was beyond Ted Eltherington’s wildest expectations
and with this in mind he formed, in 1960, J.E. Eltherington & Son
(Aluminium) Ltd. The “Son” being Graham,
today the Group Chairman of the company.
During the
early sixties aluminium extrusions were becoming
more into vogue, each customer wanting a particular
style of moulding to meet their needs. Again the
company
saw the potential and began producing suites of mouldings
with matching profiles to suit the requirements.
The
first years of the seventies were particularly active.
The company introduced a range of colours for
pre-painted aluminium sheet – significant especially
in the caravan industry. In 1971, a 120 ton press brake
was introduced. With its special tooling techniques,
it allowed pressed panels to be produced for the first
time. A new division – Domestic Products Division
was born out of the development of a product produced
for the Caravan industry. The Nassau aluminium horizontal
sliding window was adapted for houses, a successful
move which gave rise to a plethora of window and door
styles in the forthcoming years. In the latter seventies
the company introduced a newly branded window system – Barrier;
aluminium frames were constructed with a thermal break
between the outer and inner frames to cut down any
possibilities of condensation. Commercial contracts
increased substantially giving rise to the Architectural
Division.
Throughout the eighties the company concentrated
on new product development. In 1980 uPVC was the
first alternative material to aluminium since timber
was replaced. Slim line aluminium was becoming less
fashionable and to keep abreast of development, the
company installed
complete PVCu frame construction machinery to meet
increasing demand.
The caravan division continued to
expand and by 1988 Eltherington were supplying 35%
of the UK caravan industry
with their aluminium sheet cladding requirements. Continued
growth led to an investment of over £1million
by installing a decorative screen printing facility
for aluminium coil. An array of designs and colour
options, RAL, metallic & pearlescent, enabled Eltherington
to develop bespoke designs to suit customer needs.
The
company continued to expand into the millennium and
Eltherington recognised operating within multiple
markets with five separate divisions was diluting focus,
skilled resources and limiting progress. So in 2003
the company formed three individual operating companies.
The operations of caravan aluminium cladding and PVC
window and door products formed Eltherington Industries
dealing in both the caravan and modular markets. The
operations of aluminium stockholding and fabrication
formed Eltherington Aluminium. Latterly the Company
formed Eltherington Architectural Systems involved
with commercial aluminium glazing and curtain-walling
using Alumil systems, one of the largest extruders
of aluminium profiles in Europe. All these companies
are administered by the holding company, Eltherington
Group Ltd.
As of 2006 the company now operates from
a 5.5 acre site and is situated within half a mile
of the main
link road connecting Hull to the UK motorway system
and the nearby port facilities in Hull; thus enabling
swift and efficient movement of the company’s
products across the UK and to major ports in Europe.
The company currently employs over 170 people with
a turnover in excess of £20 million. |
