With a product base that centres around removing hazards and driving the industry to make more environmentally friendly choices, John Winter & Co Ltd has developed a global reputation for providing quality solutions to the foundry industry which has been magnified in the past twelve months following some strategic decisions to collaborate with fellow giants in the sector.
Stocking around 2,500 products such as binders, release agents, adhesives, coatings, sleeves, filtration, cleaning, fluxes, degassing and slag removal supplied to around 1,500 customers worldwide, John Winter has expanded and upgraded its Halifax (UK) industrial home over recent years and is now looking to further expand the site to provide additional manufacturing space. Thanks to collaborative partnerships and acquisitions that will see the company be able to offer an even wider range to its core foundry business.
Spearheading the development is managing director Adam Bennett Prof MICME, who has a long established career with the company. He is quick to point out that the reason behind the continued success at this Halifax based global foundry supplier lies in attitude and in combining quality manufacturing with dedicated technical support. “We are not just a foundry supplier, we are a manufacturing company,” he told Foundry Trade Journal. “We have lots of unique products, such as our acetone based adhesive range WinFix. We are the only company that makes that and many other products here in the UK. But we are also in tune with what the industry wants, and we support a foundry’s technical development. If the foundry industry has a specific need, we can collaborate to find a solution.”
Strengthening market position
Having celebrated the sixtieth anniversary in 2023, it was evident that John Winter was able to match a desire to push the boundaries with a lengthy legacy. The next stage would be to further strengthen its leading market position with an even wider product and service range. Thus, in January 2024 the partnership with Heinrich Wagner Sinto Maschinenfabrik GmbH began, which sees John Winter become the UK representative for the range of HWS moulding machines and plants, and auto pouring systems for sand moulds. Under the promise of “working better together” the two globally known brands now provide enhanced support for the UK market, combining their expertise for the benefit of sand casting in the UK.
Now this offering has been further strengthened with the acquisition in August 2024 of Specialist Induction Refractories (SIR) adding the missing ‘refractory’ piece to the all encompassing jigsaw.
This expansion of foundry products and the SIR technical knowledge that has transferred to John Winter means the company is well placed to continue to grow the business in a market that is keen to support ‘one-stop shop solutions’. Fundamentally, it is all about technical capabilities, as Adam explains: “For us it is about bringing more and more expertise into the business, and it is all about the right people and management of this. SIR’s customers are also our customers, we are serving the same foundry sector. Now we can manufacture the SIR products here in Halifax. The SIR proficiency means we have a team of installers undertaking the furnace and ladle re-lines. This is vital as the service element is very much a part of our ethos.”
One could be forgiven for thinking that the home market is the only customer base but far from it. John Winter exports to approximately 35 countries and has manufacturing facilities in India and the United States.
A modern facility fit for the future
The ambitious development has been matched with investment in the industrial facility in Halifax, with smart production methods coupled with a modern logistical system ensuring that products can be shipped around the world swiftly. The global nature of the business also means that Adam and his trusted team are often required to be anywhere in the world at any given time, something that is not lost on him. “That’s part of the job and part of what makes us so responsive to customer needs and market conditions. This business has grown but we have never lost sight of the customer in what is a traditional industry striving to improve at all levels. The next big thing for us is getting rid of the plastic that is used to wrap and transport our products. Manufacturing is number one, we want to make product, but we have to do it responsibly.”
Supporting a greener world
The company is already committed to operating more sustainably for the benefit of all and has made several changes at the site to meet this commitment, including the installation of solar panels and the use of all electric “bendy” trucks, flexibility which enables around fifty per cent more pallet space. With the capacity for the facility to continue to expand, Adam is clear that it needs to be done whilst meeting green credentials. “We are also looking at silica,” Adam says. “We need to redefine some products and continue to remove hazards, making them more environmentally friendly.”
There is much work to do and there are many foundries to supply but with the right attitude backed up with a great deal of expertise, there is confidence from the employees, customers and the industry that John Winter can continue to be a “supplier of choice” for the global foundry industry.
John Winter has come a long way from its original roots in the 1960s of supplying small traditional foundries with oil bonded sands and a small range of products for foundry and engineering industries. The company is now a dominant force in the foundry sector for solving an endless number of problems with the answers grounded in renowned technical expertise and decades of experience. Continued in-house investment and global partnering will aid this development into the future.