Weston was founded in 1948 by Richard Sutton, father of Geoffrey Sutton MBE, Weston’s CEO, and grandfather of Richard and Jim, the company’s Managing Director and Co-Director respectively. Belying an ultra modern production environment run to Japanese Gemba Kalzen principles, an unmistakable and friendly ‘family’ atmosphere pervades the organisation.

This blend of heritage and high-tech typifies, not just the character of Weston, but it’s premises too. Set on the banks of the Leeds/ Liverpool Navigation – in the rural village of Foulridge, East Lancashire – the original buildings have been skilfully restored for offices which lead back to purpose-built ‘state of the art’ manufacturing units.

For over 35 years, on this same, albeit smaller site the company focused on the production of airframe components. Then, with the advent of new technology in the mid-1980’s it expanded into the I.T sector. The ensuing years have seen them serve yet more diverse markets and, today, Weston supplies a wide spectrum of industries.

Growth over this time has been very progressive, structured and achieved with zero borrowings. This has allowed Weston to expand from one facility in Foulridge to five at the time of writing. Manufacturing facilities currently occupy in excess of 12,000 square metres and the company has an additional 50,000 square metres to support growth opportunities.

THE FOUR 'WESTON VALUES'

• FIRST CHOICE WITH OUR CHOSEN CUSTOMERS
• PROFIT FROM THE ENJOYMENT OF WORKING TOGETHER
• RESPECT AND UNDERSTAND THE NEEDS OF THE INDIVIDUAL
• WORK HARDER TOGETHER TO CONTINUALLY IMPROVE

At Weston, we place considerably more importance on the four 'Weston Values.'

It is the embodiment of our philosophy and the cornerstone of the way we work.

These are not hollow words but the very foundation of the relationship we build with our customers.

It achieves this by:
The elimination of waste involving everyone in the business
and
Meets customer quality and delivery requirements whilst continually reducing costs.

This 'cost down' culture underpins Weston’s overall business philosophy.

Kaizen methodologies help Weston to:
Drive through improvements
Become leaner, reducing waste
Sustain competitiveness in global markets

Kaizen supports Weston’s continuous drive for leaner manufacturing processes, and involves 5S. SMED, TPM and Problem Solving amongst other strategic improvement tools and techniques. Our Kaizen Co-ordinators and ‘Lean’ Leaders undergo constant training and development.

Complementary programmes which enhance our ability to be cost-competitive through lean manufacturing include Lean-Line Design and Value Stream Mapping & Analysis.