We talk to Jade’s Adam Jones about the benefits of investing in British manufacturing and how window and door companies can take advantage of their new Star SX38 sliding head lathe.

The tide is turning on ‘offshoring’, the economic movement that started in the 1990s, fuelled by companies relocating their manufacturing overseas in search of cheap labour and generous incentives from foreign governments, in turn providing an economic boom for Chinese and Asian economies.

Now, there is an increasing shift towards ‘reshoring’, with more than half of UK manufacturers said to be actively relocating production much closer to home.

Why? Firstly, the economics are now much less attractive to Western business. Average Chinese wage costs continue to rise and have actually more than doubled in the last decade. Shipping costs have also risen sharply in 2024 with some data showing the price of transporting a container from China to north Europe it is up by 523% year on year.

In addition, product development is speeding up, and consumer demand is more challenging which means people want newer things more frequently and on much shorter lead times. Domestic production and local supply chains introduce greater flexibility to respond to this and also reduce the requirement to hold huge amounts of stock.

“For UK businesses, including those in the fenestration sector, investing in British manufacturing not only significantly reduces supply chain risks but also introduces much greater control of production and R&D,” says Adam Jones, director of Jade.

“And while it may still be tempting to reduce component prices by outsourcing to Asia, the potential for quality issues and delays means it is now very much subject to the law of diminishing returns.

“At Jade, we would argue that it is far better to bring British engineering excellence back into the supply chain, for all the advantages it brings and especially now – following the Labour budget – where businesses will need to renew their focus on long term efficiencies.”

Adam argues that Jade’s new Star SX38 sliding head lathe – the result of a £330,000 investment by the Coventry based engineering specialist – is one way that window and door companies can do just that.

Designed to produce small fixings and fasteners in smaller batch numbers quickly, efficiently and cost effectively, the Star machine is a ‘hands-off’ lathe that can run for 24 hours with minimal need for manual intervention.

It incorporates a gang type pool post and a 10 station turret to enable simultaneous machining operations. The turret also includes an independent Z3 axis which allows two different features to be machined simultaneously using the Star’s ‘super position’ control mode.

“With the introduction of our Star machine, manufacturers can request small batch, bespoke orders for fasteners and fixings – we can produce just a few thousand units if required – and they can be delivered within a few days,” explains Adam.

“It has been designed to run automatically and consistently and the quality of the end product easily matches what you might expect from the more prestigious overseas suppliers.

“But because it’s made in Coventry, in the heartland of British manufacturing, our customers will enjoy the kind of service that just isn’t available if you’re relying on production in China or Asia – and that could prove to be crucial for those who need to operate efficiently while looking for every opportunity to introduce new design elements that can keep them ahead of the competition.

“Ultimately, from supporting the local economy, to operating more sustainably or introducing greater flexibility, efficiency and quality, there has never been a better time to back British manufacturing,” concludes Adam.

“At Jade, we have accrued years of industry experience, we know exactly what it takes to run a successful window and door factory – you’ll find our machines in the vast majority of production facilities around the UK – and our new Star machine is just the latest in a long list of engineering innovations that can offer tangible benefits for the industry.”