Gripple, the Sheffield-based manufacturer of suspension solutions for the construction industry, is celebrating five wins at the prestigious The Manufacturer MX (TMMX) Awards in partnership with the Institution of Mechanical Engineers.
The company beat off strong competition from manufacturers across the UK to win the following awards: Manufacturer of the year, Young Manufacturer of the Year, International Trade, Operational Excellence and Leadership and Strategy, after being shortlisted in 10 out of 11 categories.
Judges crowned Gripple ‘Manufacturer of the Year 2022’ due to its “growing, innovative, people-led, customer aware and focused business.”
The Young Manufacturer of the Year 2022 category was won by Natasha Lyth, sustainability manager at Gripple. Natasha joined Gripple in 2018 and now spearheads the company’s Net Zero strategy.
The judging panel said: “Natasha is fully committed to manufacturing, evidenced by her development plan. She sees her future in the sector.”
Another panel member praised Natasha for the “continuous improvements she implements at Gripple.”
Gripple won the award for International Trade for the company’s commitment to expanding its international business. Judges commented on Gripple’s entry as “great, conveying a sense of strategy, illustrating innovation and strong market adaptation.”
The Operational Excellence award recognised Gripple’s effective use of lean methodologies and techniques to drive improvements across its operations. Gripple was praised by judges for its “Toyota-style thinking, which is testimony to how the company is actively achieving operational excellence through adopting a lean approach to manufacturing.”
Gordon Macrae, special projects manager at Gripple, said: “This was a fantastic night for Gripple and for manufacturing in South Yorkshire! The TMMX Awards are the most prestigious manufacturing awards in the country, so it is a real honour for us to win five categories.
“The entry process and judging criteria are, quite rightly, rigorous and the judges really do put you to the test when they visit, but we are so pleased with the feedback we received and will use this to continually improve our operations. Well done team Gripple!”
He added: “The TMMX awards are an opportunity to showcase the passion for excellence we have across our business which is driven by Gripple being an employee-owned business.”
The winners were announced at The Manufacturer MX Awards ceremony and gala dinner which took place on Thursday 17 November at the Exhibition Centre in Liverpool, hosted by comedian Rory Bremner. The evening was held at the end of Digital Manufacturing Week and attended by 900 people from the manufacturing industry.