An upturn in the UK steel industry has contributed to a 73% increase in orders over the last 12 months for the industrial division of Wolseley, the specialist supplier of industrial valves, pipe and fittings via annual supply contracts.
The impressive results come at a time when a recent article from S&P Global Platts, suggested 2017 could be a significant turning point for the UK steel industry with a combination of anti-dumping measures, major mergers and a weakened euro combining to solving its decline in global market share.
This has contributed to Wolseley doubling the number of quotes being produced as well as the number of product lines it is processing per month for customers in this sector.
Gary Wilson, regional sales manager – industrial, said: “Over the last two or three years the steel industry has become fragmented. However, these problems are starting to iron out and we’re seeing an influx of large project work rather than just maintenance.
“We’re in a unique position to offer our industrial customers a total supply solution from helping them to identify the right product for their application, through to delivery on-site and technical after-sales support. This means we can meet the most demanding requirements which is why we’re starting to see this growth.”
The growth has also allowed the business to expand the team with four new appointments this year. Andy Clark is an onsite application engineer, Chris Thomas and Dean Best applications engineers and Laura Blackman a sales advisor.