Printers open £2m plant as operations expand

Jul 10 2008 by Andrew Mernin, The Journal

A PRINTING business which started life in the 1940s has almost doubled the size of its operation by opening a new factory.

South Tyneside firm Harlow Printing, whose main client is the NHS, has opened a new £2m plant on Simonside East Industrial Estate, South Shields, to accommodate the company’s steady growth.

The £7m-a-year firm, which enjoyed 20% annual growth last year, has headquarters on Maxwell Street, South Shields, covering more than 40,000 sq ft of floor space.

The new 35,000 sq ft factory will allow the company to grow its print management arm as its adds to its 90-strong workforce in the coming years.

Harlow’s new factory was developed in partnership with Todd Milburn Limited and construction group Whelan Limited on land owned by regional development agency One NorthEast.

The land deal with One NorthEast was worth around £126,000 while the company received a £15,000 business development grant from South Tyneside Council.

Finance director Gordon Parfitt said: “The company has grown significantly in recent years and we needed additional offices and warehouse space to accommodate our print management business.

“There’s no doubt this move and the assistance we received from One NorthEast was vital to our plans for future expansion. Without their help I’m certain we would have had to leave the area.”

Coun Iain Malcolm, leader of South Tyneside Council, said: “I’m delighted we have been able to play an important part in this latest chapter in the company’s success story.”

Around 80% of Harlow’s business is done with the NHS largely through the supply of personal child health record books used by mothers following the birth of their child.

The company supplies various health authorities across the country from Lanarkshire in Scotland down to Portsmouth on the south coast.

The company is led by managing director Richard Walker, whose grandfather set up Harlow in 1947.