Door manufacturer Peformance Doorset Solutions (PDS) has invested about £1.3m in additional factory space and woodworking technology and has branched out into the manufacture of stairs and windows.
PDS, based in Littleborough, Lancashire, acquired the extra 13,000ft² space to accommodate the Rochdale City Joinery business it recently acquired, as well as its own joinery division. This gives PDS the ability to manufacture purpose-made joinery products.
A third development is a move away from tropical timber and towards a Forest Stewardship Council-certified laminated softwood timber product.
“Sapele and other West African timber are under a lot of pressure environmentally,” said PDS managing director Tim Fairley.
“We also have ISO 14001 environmental accreditation, so as part of that we have to be thinking of product development and moving away from tropical hardwoods.”
But Mr Fairley said the performance characteristics of defect-cut finger-jointed laminated redwood, with no resin and little movement, was also a strong reason to try the product. Working with paint manufacturer Teknos, PDS plans to offer a 10-year guarantee on its laminated windows.
PDS, set up by former managers of Dale Joinery in 2003, produces more than 15,000 external, entrance and fire door sets annually.
