Engineering firm moves to Stratford-upon-Avon from Birmingham

By Nicky Godding

3 February 2023

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A multinational engineering firm is moving its UK base from Birmingham to Stratford-upon-Avon and creating up to 20 new jobs in the process.

GROB Machine Tools UK, which currently employs 20 people, is set to move into the former Building Profiles unit on Timothy’s Bridge Road in Stratford and expand its team once a refurbishment of the site is complete.

The company, originally founded in Germany, manufactures machines used to create components used in a wide variety of sectors, such as automotive, aerospace, medical, and energy.

And after winning a 200 million-Euro contract with a major original equipment manufacturer (OEM), the time was right for the UK branch of the company to move away from its Birmingham base and into bigger premises.

The 14,000 sq ft unit was let to GROB Machine Tools UK after Jonathan Blood, director at Leamington-based agents Wareing & Co, completed the deal.

Louis Hill, Managing Director of GROB Machine Tools UK, said: “We had outgrown our base in Birmingham, and we needed a site that not only had a good factory floor, but high-quality office space too.

“We saw there were lots of small units that had this, and lots of incredibly large warehouses, but we needed something that fell somewhere in the middle.

“The unit in Stratford that Wareing & Co promoted ticked all the boxes. It has manufacturing space, office space, and enough space for a showroom where we can bring current and prospective customers to highlight the work we do.

“And staying in the Midlands was key for us – we work across the country and into Ireland too, so having a central base that is easily accessible is very important.

“It’ll also be a nice bonus to be in a town like Stratford with all of its history and charm. GROB Machine Tools UK was originally based in Wellesbourne before it moved to Birmingham, so it’s great to be returning to Warwickshire.

“We’re hoping to be all moved in within a few weeks and we are really excited to start this new chapter in our company’s history.”

Jonathan Blood, director at Wareing & Co added: “GROB Machine Tools had very clear requirements about what it wanted, so it was brilliant to be able to find Louis and the team a site that was perfect for them.

“This deal will bring high-quality jobs into Stratford and ensure a unit that had been occupied in Stratford for a very long time by Building Profiles does not sit empty. We are looking forward to seeing GROB Machine Tools make their mark in Stratford.”

By Nicky Godding

Nicky Godding is editor of The Business Magazine. Before her journalism career, she worked mainly in public relations moving into writing when she was invited to launch Retail Watch, a publication covering retail and real estate across Europe.

After some years of constant travelling, she tucked away her passport and concentrated on business writing, co-founding a successful regional business magazine. She has interviewed some of the UK’s most successful entrepreneurs who have built multi-million-pound businesses and reported on many science and technology firsts.

She reports on the region’s thriving business economy from start-ups, family businesses and multi-million-pound corporations, to the professionals that support their growth and the institutions that educate the next generation of business leaders.