Excellence celebrated at 25th Manufacturing Awards

A very special event took place on Thursday, October 10 at The Barnstaple Hotel, the 25th Manufacturing Awards put together by a dedicated team led by Tim Puttock, Chairman of the North Devon Manufacturers Association.

Ranging from Apprentice of the Year to Environmental Project to International Trader of the Year, the evening saw the very best in local business take to the stage for well-deserved congratulations.

“We are all about bringing these companies together and celebrating the best practice and stories of the good and bad things that are happening,” said Tim at the ceremony.

When asked about the state of local business, he had a simple message.

“It is very diverse, and I think that is an advantage, that we’re not made up of massive organisations, but a lot of SME companies who are trading in the area which are all producing in very different ways. We have automotive, pharmaceutical and electronic specialists with no end to skills here in North Devon. 

“I actually work for a company with a very familiar name TDK and we are based locally. Most people of a certain age will remember those wonderful cassettes that we all used to buy to record the music of the day. 

“However, it may be a brand that is missing from our daily lives now as we deliver business to business and concentrate on other areas of technology. Chances are if you’re in hospital TDK technology will be in the scanner and there is a device within mobile phones that belongs to the company as well. It has come a long way since cassette tapes.”

As the awards unfolded, some remarkable people and companies took to the stage with Rhys Floyde of Heathcote Fabrics winning Apprentice of the Year and the company itself winning Product of the Year. 

Krempel Industries were Business Transformation of the Year and Eaton, the power management company from South Molten won the Environmental Project with its remarkable energy saving programme and the lowering of greenhouse gas emissions. 

The organisation which had made significant strides in addressing health related challenges in the workplace was the pharmaceutical company Accord from Barnstaple and the employee-owned Kingsley Plastics walked away with the Innovation award.

Accord came back into the spotlight with the Team trophy as the company had to reprocess a huge export order in a matter of days due to a last-minute regulatory change. 

CMTG of Great Torrington became International Trader winners and took the top title of Manufacturer of the Year, chosen by the judges as the most outstanding entry received.

“This has been a true celebration of the success of employees and employers and what they contribute to the area,” said Tim. 

“A hundred and twenty people are here tonight in a great atmosphere plus we have a locally born speaker, Helena Hills, talking about Truestart Coffee, a remarkable company that she and her husband set up which is taking the drinks world by storm.”

The charity raffle raised £1000 for ChemoHero and their kindness in a box campaign.