Lisburn’s KME Steelworks is building up steel stocks before Brexit restrictions

A leading Northern Ireland manufacturing and engineering firm which recently invested over £2m in an expansion plan says the rush is on to secure steel stocks before possible Brexit restrictions are imposed on January 1 2021.
Seamus Murchan with completed steel light panelsSeamus Murchan with completed steel light panels
Seamus Murchan with completed steel light panels

Lisburn-based KME Steelworks Ltd. which designs and manufactures bespoke steel moulds for the construction and agriculture sectors as well as producing large volume subcontract components for a wide range of equipment manufacturers, says the price of steel has been rising sharply.

KME Steelworks director Seamus Murchan says steel prices have increased by almost 25% in the past three months.

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He continued: “Steel supply is vital to our business as everything we produce relies on our ability to source good quality high grade steel. Due to the uncertainty that we face, particularly in the early months of 2021, we made the decision to substantially increase our steel stocks before the end of the year. This was to provide the reassurance and security to our customers that our supply of product to them would not be interrupted in the new year after the Brexit transition period ends. We have put in place sufficient stock for a large proportion of our first quarter’s production.

“Covid and Brexit are a double whammy for the sector. The challenge lies with the steel mills, a sector which by its very nature and scale is slow moving and which in early Covid restrictions had to scale back production as steel demand virtually dried up. Now the mills are trying to ramp production back up to meet renewed demand which is expected to increase further in early 2021.”

KME Steelworks which recently invested £1m in a state-of-the-art laser cutting plant, now employs more than 70 people and requires a minimum of 200 tonnes of steel per month to manufacture its products. KME’s moulds business includes the supply of bespoke moulds for a wide variety of concrete products.

Mr Murchan added: “The moulds business has been surging for us in recent months. The complex steel moulds that we design and manufacture are used for many applications. Recent examples include drainage channel moulds for the production of hundreds of miles of drains along roadways, arch moulds for spanning road systems and junction box moulds for telecommunication applications.

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“On the subcontract side of the business we are proud to have assisted our customers achieve their growth targets with a reliable supply of quality components with an emphasis on timely delivery. One such customer is a leading manufacturer of compacting equipment for the recycling sector which is also in a major growth phase, so our ability to avoid any risk of disruption to supply is critical for them to realise their targets ”

KME Steelworks recently invested £2m to expand its manufacturing and fabrication services while relocating to a new 65,000 square foot facility in Lambeg.

The company’s main market is the UK and Ireland but also exports moulds to the US, Canada and Spain and envisages further international growth.

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