Ground-breaking ceremony marks start of £20M investment in high-tech Aflex Hose factory

Work has started on a new, high-tech £20M factory for Aflex Hose in Huddersfield – with an official turf-cutting ceremony which took place on the 20th March. The new factory, once operational, will help to boost the company’s production capacity by 70%.

Aflex Hose is part of the Watson-Marlow Fluid Technology Group (WMFTG), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Spirax-Sarco Engineering plc which is a FTSE 100 listed company. Aflex Hose innovates, develops, manufactures and assembles the widest and most technically advanced range of PTFE-lined flexible hose products. Its products are used globally by food and drink manufacturers and throughout the automotive and pharmaceutical industries.

The ceremony took place at the build-site which is located at the Bradley Business Park in Huddersfield. Attendees included representatives from Aflex Hose, its parent company Watson-Marlow Fluid Technology Group, Avison Young and GMI Construction Group.

The new Aflex Hose factory is a key investment by WMFTG in the region. The company says that once completed, its new facility will catalyse local employment opportunities; it expects that up to 200 new jobs will be created as a result of the new development over the next 10 years.

Design concept of the new Aflex Hose factory

Commenting on the official start of construction of the new factory, David Cole, Managing Director of Aflex Hose Ltd, said: ‘We are very pleased to be underway with construction work. The new Aflex Hose factory will enable us to boost production capacity by 70% as well as widen our offer to customers. This investment also demonstrates our commitment to creating new and long-term employment opportunities in one of Britain’s most advanced technology businesses.”

Aflex Hose plans to complete the new factory by the summer of 2020.