Business Weekly - Cambridge, UK

Luton-based Hayward Tyler has survived two world wars, evolving from its initial guise as a plumbing manufacturer after the Napoleonic Wars into an engineering firm providing its pump and fluid-filled motor technology at the forefront of the oil & gas, power generation, renewable energy and chemical processing industries.

A recent surge in worldwide orders for its pumps and motors from far-flung regions of the globe including China and Yemen have initiated a major recruitment drive for the firm, which is aiming to regain staff numbers it boasted in the seventies.

Hayward is looking to increase the headcount by 10 per cent, adding 20 staff in all areas of the business, “from the shop floor right through to regional managers,” said Larry Redmond, director of human resources at the firm.

“This is an exciting time for the company and we now need to fill a number of important positions over the coming months.”

It is indeed an exciting time for the company, after it secured large orders from China, The Yemen and Malaysia this month alone.

Founded in 1815, the company has had a rich history, but the latest growth in staff numbers will need to go a long way to regain the heady heights of success the company experienced during the 1970s.

Hayward Tyler won’t need to expand its premises to accommodate the influx of staff, as the company has downsized considerably over the last 30 years, leaving plenty of space for new employees.

“When I came on board as an apprentice in 1975, we had 600 employees here in Luton, so as we now have just 200 we have plenty of room for these 20 and a fair few more,” Redmond continued.

But the company is moving from strength to strength, against the widely publicised downturn in the UK engineering sector, and has won numerous contracts from energy firms across the globe.

In the early part of its history, Hayward Tyler manufactured mineral water machinery, hydraulic presses, water closets and day to day plumbing accessories.  

Later, in 1903, Hayward Tyler developed the first automobile at its factory in Luton but a serious fire destroyed the prototype.

Before the First World War the company started to manufacture submersible motors and pumps and these were later followed by high pressure pumps that would be used in nuclear power stations.

Today, the company has taken its engineering expertise forward and has become a world leader in motor and pump technology.

It has further strengthened its forward order book by receiving additional new orders for Glandless Motor Pumps from Shanghai Boiler Works (SBWL) and Dong Fang Boiler Group (DFBG) in China, bringing the number of pump units ordered by the two companies in 2007 to 37, with a collective value in excess of £15m.

The latest set of orders are all for the company’s glandless motor pumps, which will be used on Advanced Supercritical Once-Through (ASOT) boiler sets that are being built for new power stations in China.

“China and the Asia region continue to be a powerhouse of industrial growth and it is important that we continue to grow our market leading position in these markets as they drive for cleaner energy provision,” said Hayward Tyler’s general manager in China, John Ling.

As part of SBWL’s expansion three of the sub-critical boilers will be exported to India & Indonesia – two for the thermal power plant in India and the other for the Suralaya power station in Indonesia.

A major factor for the continuation of the strong relationship between SBWL and Hayward Tyler is the local aftermarket support provided by Hayward Tyler’s service facility in Kunshan, near Shanghai.

The Luton firm also has a strong presence in the oil & gas market and has delivered 16 gear driven side entry mixers for the Yemen Refining Company’s two refineries, based in Aden and Marib. It also fulfilled a significant Malaysian order from Inovatif Erat (IESB) for three closed drain transfer pumps for use on an offshore oil & gas rig in the South China Sea.