Made in Thailand

BNL, the North Yorkshire designer of thermoplastic bearing assemblies, is building a new factory near Rayong in Thailand.

BNL, the North Yorkshire designer of thermoplastic bearing assemblies, is building a factory near Rayong in Thailand. The new facility will be finished by June and production will start in October this year.

'BNL’s sustained growth means we have to plan for new capacity and this, combined with increasing sales of our products to Malaysia, China and other countries in Asia, encouraged us to establish a new factory in Thailand,' said BNL's International Manufacturing Manager Dave Clark.

The factory will predominantly benefit BNL’s local customers by bringing production closer to their own manufacturing bases. The site is also close to one of BNL’s major suppliers, creating efficiencies throughout the company's supply chain. Initially, it will take on the assembly of parts for some Asia-based customers.

A team of fifty assemblers will begin work during August and September. Additional staff will operate seven new Krauss Maffei moulding machines, which range from 35 - 160 tonnes.

Gavin Charlesworth, who joined BNL in May 2008 will oversee the Thailand operation as the Managing Director of BNL (Thailand) Limited. 

The Yorkshire-based company also maintains a subsidiary in Foxboro, Massachusetts in the US and in Tokyo, Japan.