Manufacturing group pledges future to Sheffield

Engineering group Tinsley Bridge is pledging its future to Yorkshire with a £5m redevelopment.

Sheffield-based Tinsley Bridge Group started life in the 1850s, manufacturing vehicle suspension springs. It now makes anti-roll bars for truck producers including Volvo and Renault, rolling stock parts for railways and suspension components for military vehicles.

Plans to redevelop the group’s 14-acre Shepcote Lane base have been given a boost by a Regional Growth Fund grant of £750,000, which has been secured with the help of Creative Sheffield.

The company plans to move out of an old factory on the site, which was built in 1959, to two new buildings, both covering 5,000 sq metres. Developers have already started building the first one, which should be completed early next year.

Managing director Mark Webber said: “This really is the start of a new era for us. We have some exciting new contracts and products coming on stream and we need to plan ahead. What makes it even more exciting is that our plans are part of a renaissance for manufacturing across the UK and particularly here in Sheffield. People are beginning to realise that manufacturing has a real future.”

Tinsley Bridge has a turnover of £16m and employs 180 people. The new contracts include supplying Network Rail with track infrastructure equipment. The new products coming on stream include a material for vehicle suspension components which can cope with extreme weight, such as heavy military vehicles. The plans are being supported by Creative Sheffield, which is a partner in the South Yorkshire Sector Growth Enhancement Programme.