Having recently announced our intention to invest in a major expansion of iBeam manufacturing capacity in the West Midlands by opening a new factory in Willenhall, we are delighted to confirm that Robinson Manufacturing Ltd (RML) has instead acquired the joist manufacturing business of National Hickman from Hickman Industries Limited.

This major expansion, which includes both the Wolverhampton and Fife factories, takes the number of factories in the Robinson Manufacturing group to seven across the UK and facilitates our commitment to support a variety of regional and national housebuilders who have requested additional supply in these areas.

CEO of Robinson Manufacturing, Simon Kidney, is delighted by the running start the acquisition gives the business: “We have been in personal communication with senior teams within housebuilders of all sizes over the last three months and they are crying out for additional joist capacity across the West Midlands and beyond,” he explained. “Acquiring this joist business allows us to start to meet the scale of demand from day one – as well as making Robinson Manufacturing a truly national business.”

As well as adding substantially to joist manufacturing capacity, the Wolverhampton factory comes with substantial office space, which RML will use to concentrate our floor design into a new centre of excellence, mirroring our highly effective truss design structure in Wellingborough. The successful Robinson Manufacturing customer service model, which has underpinned the company’s significant growth in recent years, will also be applied to housebuilders choosing RML for joist supply.

The reputation of Robinson Manufacturing is built upon the personal commitment of our outstanding people, many of whom have grown with the company since its beginnings as a family business. As we expand further, we continue to invest in local communities allowing us to attract the finest talent in the areas we serve across the country.

This dedication to customer satisfaction, open communication and quality is unrivalled and enables us to supply competitively at every level in the housebuilding sector. Robinson Manufacturing continues to build partnerships with housebuilders from the smallest local operation to the best-known household names through national contracts.