From the internationally little-known seaside town of Littlehampton, SI Protech manufacture products for some of the biggest names in the drinks industry, including Heineken, Krombacher and many more. With approximately 80% of their business coming through referrals, SI Protech has a clear position as reputable industry leaders within the market. In the 19 years since it’s been established it has reached many milestones, including:
- 2007 – move beyond just prototyping into manufacturing
- 2009 – moved to the current 30,000 sq.ft. factory in Littlehampton to cope with demand
- 2016 – acquired by Mitchell Joseph Corp. in the US giving them access to more capital and the US markets
Negri Bossi has worked with SI Protech through all these transitions, where they now operate 12 modern machines ranging from 55 to 800 tonnes which was their most recent investment.
Quote from SI Protech founder, Mark Sillince “We have been committed to Negri Bossi machines for the past 12 years and have always found them highly reliable, with good shot to shot repeatability provided they are maintained as with any moulding machine. Controls are very user friendly. The cost of ownership is in my opinion among the best available at this level of machine and adopting a standardised purchasing policy has served our business very well”
One of the biggest step changes in SI Protech’s recent history was to allow Mark Sillince, as the key innovator, to focus his time even more in this area without the day to day technical demands of the business. This has been helped by the appointment of a new MD, Alan Edmonds and the development of the technical team. Throughout his years in the industry, Mark has worked for some of the biggest brewers and is well recognised in the manufacturing industry. The business has grown to £4.0m t/o and sales, in the past 3 years have expanded at about 10-15 % pa.
75% of what SI Protech produces is exported around Europe and worldwide. This remarkable value alone highlights the successes of what it does – that multinational companies from around the world come to a little town in West Sussex to have their products developed and manufactured. Trust in the company and its quality assurance has been key to its success in the UK and overseas. SI Protech are ISO 9001 Certified for quality across all aspects of its business, and prides itself on always providing customers with the best products and results. What’s more, its ISO 14001 certification highlights SI Protech’s commitment to the highest environmental standards, in an industry where it can easily be overlooked. SI Protech understands the importance of a growing business. Last year’s sales and profits are both up year on year, and it always ensures products are delivered on time and on budget to guarantee customer satisfaction.
Innovation is at the heart of everything SI Protech does. Whether it’s the latest inventions or the way the company progresses, innovation has been the driving force of its success. The vast array
of innovations which spread back over the company’s history and into its future, makes the company what it has become today. From designing and manufacturing critical components for Heineken’s 5 litre draught keg unit to creating its own Intellectual Property, innovation is SI Protech’s driving force. Marks name appears on the patent for Boddington’s beer can with a widget – one of the biggest revolutions in the beverage industry history.
One of its proudest and most recent innovations, has been the development of the Chill-Can – the world’s first self-chilling can.
This elite technology will revolutionise the way drinks manufacturers sell and marketed their drinks. It’s described as: “A revolutionary, safe, environmentally friendly patented technology that the beverage industry has coveted for decades.” And this isn’t where it ends. SI Protech has continued to work with a number of household names to broaden the capabilities of this innovation, expanding it into new markets. It’s industry-leading developments like this, and many others in its portfolio, that highlight the pioneering methods behind how SI Protech works.
In a world full of demanding consumers who are always looking for ways to make their life easier, SI Protech manufactures products to fulfil that demand. Investment has also played a heavy part in its recent growth, with substantial investments being put into injection moulding machines, robots, ancillaries and automated assembly equipment and into the people. By constantly improving the infrastructure and equipment, it ensures work is always at the highest standard and keeps up with the latest technology. SI Protech invests 10% of its annual turnover into research and development; mre than most FTSE companies who spend roughly 5%. It’s this investment into manufacturing that keeps SI Protech competitive with larger manufacturing companies. The efficiency of how SI Protech has always, and continues to be run is one of its greatest achievements. It has 25 core employees with very low staff turnover, meaning it has a factory of committed and highly trained workers. Even the contract employees return year after year to keep up with seasonal demands. And while automation has become a bigger part of the business, it hasn’t taken over the quality provided by the workforce. SI Protech always ensures its staff are redeployed in other areas of its manufacturing process, ensuring their specialities continue to drive the business.
Much of the new investment has been to support our key customers such as Heineken and its operating companies around the world and our parent company in the USA – the Joseph company headquartered in Irvine , California.
