THE COMPANY that includes the UK Armed Forces, the European Space Agency and the president of Turkmenistan among customers for its bespoke industrial and aircraft hangar doors has moved into its new purpose-built headquarters in Bedfordshire.
Juno Place, on Stratton Business Park in Biggleswade, is more than double the size of the previous HQ of Jewers Doors only a few hundreds yards away.
Staff moved into the new factory and office building after only a 26-week build programme. Speaking at the opening ceremony performed by founder and chairman Nigel Jewers, managing director Chris Jewers said: “This is a hugely proud moment for the family, the company and our amazing employees, all of whom have worked incredibly hard to put the business in a position where we have been able to make this happen.”
The new headquarters consists of 45,700 sq ft of factory space and more than 12,000 sq ft of offices.
Jewers Doors had been at its previous premises in Biggleswade since 1993 but with the workforce growing and offices now in the Middle East, North America and Europe, the company decided to build new manufacturing facilities and offices to design and manufacture its range of industrial sliding folding doors, aircraft hangar doors and bespoke industrial door solutions.
Jewers’ Esavian range of sliding and folding doors are in service on every continent and in more than 40 countries. They are the most advanced hangar door system in the world and remain the premium choice for commercial airlines, military, maintenance, repair and overhaul organisations, airport fixed-base operators and royalty.
Recent projects include the supply and installation of a pair of 70 metres high, bespoke hinged doors on the mobile gantry for the European Space Agency’s Ariane 6 space rocket in French Guiana. The two lower leaves weigh 45 tonnes each and the upper leaves 16 tonnes each.
A current order to supply and install nine sets of Esavian Type 126 power operated steel sliding hangar doors for the Turkmenistan Presidential hangars at Ashgabat Airport in Turkmenistan is being overseen by Jewers’ office in Turkey.
The firm also continues to win orders for the UK Armed Forces and military customers around the world. The Gulf States are its biggest export market.
The new headquarters at Biggleswade were designed by architects Woods Hardwick at the practice’s Bedford office and built by Milton Keynes-based Parkway Construction.
Energy efficient heating and cooling systems have been installed in both the factory and offices and there are more than 200 sq metres of photovoltaic panels on the roof capable of generating more than 42kW of power and with scope to expand in the future.
Excess electricity can be fed back into the National Grid.
Jewers also designs and manufactures its Phoenix range of smaller sliding and folding doors, which are popular with businesses around the world in sectors including the emergency services, aviation, rail, defence, education, retail and utilities.
The range suits applications requiring rapid movement of vehicles in and out of a building. Recent projects include hangar doors for the National Police Air Service and the Essex & Herts Air Ambulance at North Weald, fire station doors into the USA and an order for 14 sets of Swift-SEW doors for the new Etihad Rail Depot in Abu Dhabi which are about to go into production.
Jewers is planning further investment in its Biggleswade site with the arrival of a new panel press and a new powder coating plant.
Mark Jewers, director of the Phoenix division, said: “The company is buzzing about the new facilities and the future for industrial folding doors. We have a state of the art eight-metre-long panel press being installed and our new powder coating plant will hugely improve the quality and service we are able to provide for our folding sliding doors.”
