Digbits digs in
13 August 2021
The combination of rising demand and disruptions in deliveries from overseas suppliers has made many businesses look at the long-term resilience of their supply chains.
This can also mean that companies who manufacture in the UK and source materials from as close to home as possible are in a better position.
This has certainly been the case for Digbits UK, the Rugeley based maker of attachments and wear parts for excavators. Its sister business, BAV Crushers, manufactures specialist crushing implements.
Both operations have had to respond to sharp rises in demand as construction bounced back following the first lockdown.
“We’re fortunate in that we make the products here in our factory (below),” director Marcus Clay told me. “Some other suppliers are wholly reliant on imports from the Far East.
“We made a decision years ago that if you are serious about supplying in the long term, then you have to manufacture here. Wages and the costs of construction in, say, China can only rise and transport costs will increase.
“There’s also the risk of unforeseen disruption - such as the blocking of the Suez Canal by the Ever Given container ship in March.
“We do import the tracks we supply – no-one manufactures them in this country any more – but that is less of an issue because there are fewer variants and it’s easier to keep good stocks. By comparison, the number of different buckets available is phenomenal,” said Marcus.
“The supply of steel is an issue, of course, but again we aren’t as affected as some others. We forward order and once you have the steel you, as the manufacturer, can make it into whatever it needs to be.”
Meeting the demand has nevertheless created challenges for Marcus, his father John who is also a director, and the rest of the team. Digbits is now running two production shifts at the Rugeley factory and has recruited more sales and office staff.
The company makes buckets and attachments like rakes, grapples, grabs, riddle buckets and trenchers for machines ranging from 0.5-tonne minis to 80-tonne excavators.
● For more latest news stories click here and for the Site-Eco area click here.
