SUBCONTRACTING NEWS

JLRQ Award for BCW

Component manufacturing solutions provider BCW Engineering has received the Jaguar Land Rover Quality (JLRQ) award, marking a major milestone in its journey as a tier-one supplier to one of the UK’s most iconic automotive manufacturers. The award presentation took place this week at BCW’s Innovation Drive headquarters in Burnley, where senior representatives from Jaguar Land Rover joined the BCW team to celebrate the achievement. The JLRQ award is a significant quality accreditation granted to suppliers that demonstrate exceptional performance across quality, cost, delivery and customer satisfaction.

More information www.bcwgroup.co.uk

Fabricator Achieves 40% Revenue Growth

Tadweld, a provider of metal fabrication and engineering solutions based in Tadcaster, is reporting a landmark year of growth and achievement despite the steel industry facing significant challenges. The company has achieved a 40% increase in revenue and welcomed its 50th team member – two significant milestones that underscore Tadweld’s continued industry momentum. The business has invested over £500,000 in capital equipment in the past 12 months, including two state-of-the-art laser welding machines, as well as new Amada presses and guillotines.

More information www.tadweld.co.uk

Subcontract Market Up 61% in Q2

The UK subcontract manufacturing market leapt ahead in the second quarter of 2025 as large buyers returned to the market with new projects. The signs are that there are more to come. The latest Contract Manufacturing Index (CMI) shows that the subcontract market was up 61% on Q1 20205, which was itself 50% up on Q4 2024.

Commenting on the figures, Qimtek owner Karl Wigart says: “It’s good to see the market up on the previous quarter; it finally seems to be getting up some momentum and shrugging off potential adverse factors. We’re hearing that there are more projects to come, but buyers are not sure when that will be. Hopefully this growth will continue in the next quarter.”

More information www.qimtek.co.uk

Multi-million expansion at Doncasters

Precision castings specialist Doncasters has commissioned a new fully automated shell line at its Groton facility in Connecticut, USA, a key advancement in the company’s long-term manufacturing strategy. The $13m capital investment expands the Groton site’s operational footprint by 17,000 ft² and introduces next-generation automation and environmental control systems. Equipped with three high-precision six-axis robots and the IC-Crystal Shell Management System for process management, the new line significantly enhances production capacity, part quality and operational reliability.

More information www.doncasters.com

UK’s most automated 3D print facility

Midlands 3D has opened what it believes to be the most automated polymer 3D print production facility operating in the UK. Earlier this month, the company threw open the doors of its new HQ at an industry open day, showing how it has more than quadrupled its floor space and taken the opportunity to upgrade its fleet of HP MultiJet Fusion (MJF) Printers, adding a proprietary automation system to each.

The automation system enables machines to change their ‘build unit’ automatically once a build is complete, enabling another build to begin within minutes. Utilising these technologies enables the machines to run continuously, dramatically increasing overall efficiency, lowering operating costs and lead times for large print runs.

More information www.midlands3d.com