Heritage
Innovation and manufacturing have always been at the heart of what we do.
Our story starts in 1985, in Fence, Lancashire and our first home was Spring Mill, a former cotton factory which, like so many others in the area, stood as a testament to the county’s rich textile heritage.
From our beginnings, we have been committed to pioneering innovations within our industry. We introduced inherently flame retardant Trevira CS yarns to our textiles and were the first contract fabric manufacturer in the world to do so, allowing us to create intricate and desirable fabric collections while achieving the highest standards of flame retardancy, to help make contract environments safer places.
Through our efforts and expertise, we were able to grow our business, until we eventually owned the Spring Mill site, allowing us to continue Lancashire’s textile lineage and create new jobs, achievements of which we have always been proud.
We’ve continued to innovate throughout our history. Alongside elevating fire safety standards, we were also the first contract fabric manufacturer to embrace sublimation printing technology. This new method provided a greener, more efficient fabric printing process which produced minimal water waste compared to traditional techniques and has since become the industry standard.
We have consistently led the way on antimicrobial protection. Our exclusive Shieldplus technology represents the most effective and safest choice in antimicrobial protection to contract fabrics available on the market today. Shieldplus lists a myriad of advantages over conventional antimicrobials, such as being quicker acting, longer-lasting and being more environmentally friendly. These innovations have seen us become Europe’s largest supplier of antimicrobial textiles and, with Shieldplus proven effective at inhibiting the coronavirus, we were in the unique position to supply thousands of metres of fabric to emergency NHS Nightingale hospitals at the height of the pandemic.
Through developing these technical advantages and growing our portfolio of design-led, high-performance fabrics, we have established our name as trusted suppliers to the hospitality, healthcare, cruise, education, workspace and commercial markets, with representation in more than 80 countries.
In 2015, we celebrated our 30th anniversary and moved from Spring Mill to our current premises in Hapton. With enhanced facilities and a larger, more sophisticated warehouse, the site now stands as our global headquarters, allowing us improved coordination with our Panaz USA team, our business development managers in Europe and Asia and our agents in all corners of the world.
As we continue to develop and grow, we continue to create and innovate. We have expanded our manufacturing processes into digital paper printing, on both standard and double widths, allowing us to bring our entire print manufacturing process, from design to finished fabric, entirely in house.
We continue to introduce green initiatives into our market. With EcoTwill, we launched the contract fabric industry’s first 100% recycled print base cloth, supporting any of our print designs as a standard option. This commitment has also seen us branch out into new sectors, such as with SilicaStone, a sustainable alternative to quarried stone for wall cladding and solid surfaces, handmade from recycled glass and ceramic.
In response to the pandemic, we expanded the protection offered by our Shieldplus antimicrobial technology into a range of topical cleaning supplements suitable for laundry, surfaces and equipment, to help fight against the spread of infection in all areas of life.
And in design, we launched ReMake, the UK’s first online bespoke contract fabric service. Allowing our customers to quickly and easily recolour, rescale and redesign thousands of fabrics from anywhere with an internet connection. These can then be sent directly to our digital print facilities, and on-demand samples can be printed and sent to the customer, before commissioning their requirements.
For over three decades we have been committed to excellence in fabric design, manufacturing & technology and are proud to continue the region’s textile heritage, from our headquarters in Lancashire to our customers around the globe.
