1101, the Sheffield-based digital transformation company, has announced the results of a major strategic partnership with Bristol manufacturer Apex Pumps, leading to a projected £400,000 reduction in stock-holding costs.
Apex Pumps, a leading producer of high-performance centrifugal pumps, was facing a common “growing pains” scenario: a surge in international demand was being throttled by legacy IT systems. Following a competitive tender against four other firms, 1101 was selected to review and enhance the manufacturer’s digital infrastructure.
The transformation project focused on eliminating operational “leakage”—inefficiencies in remote access, unreliable logins, and reactive IT maintenance—that were slowing down both the factory floor and the head office.
Remarkably, the most significant gains were achieved without using any new technology. By auditing Apex Pumps’s existing IT environment and engineering a proactive “Transformation Roadmap,” the company unlocked latent capabilities within the business. This enabled Apex Pumps to successfully roll out Material Requirements Planning (MRP), leading to an impressive 25% reduction in stock levels.
Phil Townsend, general manager of Apex Pumps, commented: “We have already started to roll out the use of MRP on key items. This is looking like it could potentially reduce our stock levels by 25%, freeing up approximately £400,000 in working capital.”
Oz Hetherington, managing directorat 1101, added: “Many businesses are sitting on a goldmine of untapped digital potential. Apex Pumps didn’t need any investment in new software; they only needed to commit time to work through the 1101 process. Seeing a Sheffield firm help a Bristol powerhouse find £400k in their own operations is exactly why we do what we do.”
The partnership has moved Apex Pumps from a reactive “patch-and-mend” IT culture to a proactive, secure, and scalable model, providing a stable baseline for their continued global growth.
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