Wire Bending But Straight Success
Established in 1991, AWB initially supplied components to well-known companies of that era such as Kenwood, Morphy Richards , Labgear and Beldray. As one of five brothers, all businessmen, Silvio Perna has led the company through the decades, driving change in the industry to introduce machine technology to bend wire, ahead of his competitors.
Silvio travelled the world selling CNC Wire Bending machines to a range of industries, including automotive, point of sale and even shopping trolleys manufacturing industry in South Africa. In the early 2000s, Asia entered the market, pushing the prices down and attracting volume manufacture from the UK, so Silvio pivoted the business to focus on the manufacture of products directly for customers, which now include the agricultural sector, heavy duty coat hangers for fire stations and Point of Sale for retailers – “essentially anywhere that wire was used”.
“It was a challenging time and we survived by being agile,” explained Silvio, “We could no longer rely on the high-volume orders and had to be more creative in terms of production.”
One project that the company worked on was the “London Wire Taxi” created by Benedict Radcliffe which was installed in the departures lounge of Terminal 2 at Heathrow Airport, AWB went on to work with the artist on other installations around the globe.
“I knew that in order to grow as a company, we needed to step outside of the box and be open to working on jobs which were different from what we had done before,” stated Silvio, this attitude lead to AWB now “ producing over 30,000 cricket visors for Masauri per year”.
To help with the business growth, Silvio purchased his first factory some 10yrs ago with a second to follow for fabrication some 5yrs later. However, he knew that to succeed in his growth plans, would welding automation to increase production capacity and improve delivery times for products. To achieve this and to put the business in a position to bid for valuable accounts, they needed to purchase a Yaskawa welding robot.
This is where Growth Works came in, where through a grant, helped Silvio to buy one of these robots which are more accurate, faster and neater than a human producing the same item. “One example of the way that the robot could aid the business is that we would now be in a position to pitch for a job to produce 50,000 chairs, which we would not have been able to do before,” explained Silvio.
The company are also working with a former Dragon’s Den contestant, The Dog-G8 Company who were looking to place a high-volume order for their products to reduce the production price. “Obtaining the robot will also mean that rather than reducing our team, we will create employment to work it which is also great for the business, and this is part of the benefit of receiving the Growth Works grant,” stated Silvio.
The company are also working with a former Dragon’s Den contestant, The Dog-G8 Company who were looking to place a high-volume order for their products to reduce the production price. “Obtaining the robot will also mean that rather than reducing our team, we will create employment to work it which is also great for the business, and this is part of the benefit of receiving the Growth Works grant,” stated Silvio.
Other contracts now open to them include the production of composite pallets for which the grant helped to fund equipment to ensure quality and accuracy such as a 3D scanner. Both the robot and the scanner, part-funded by Growth Works, will help increase the turnover for the business to potentially reach the £6million turnover target Silvio has set in terms of growth. “As well as helping the business to thrive financially, the Growth Works grant will allow us to recruit more staff – maybe as many as 10-15 new jobs and help to retain our current team.”
“We are now in a much stronger position and able to create better quality products as well as once again leading the way in the use of technology in this field,” commented Silvio. Having been devastated during the COVID-19 pandemic, the future for the business is looking positive, although the cost of materials and energy are key issues post Brexit. “The Growth Works grant has been a tremendous help to our efforts to get back on track again after the past few years, and we are aiming for the bigger picture,” said Silvio.
Silvio has also caught the attention of the politicians and media with visits from Sir Keir Starmer, Anneliese Dodds and Rachel Reeves as well as features on the BBC and ITV. “They are all interested in how we are using innovative technology to drive business growth in the current economic climate, which I am very happy to share my experiences,” he stated.
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