Ebac looking to clean up with white goods adventure

The simple notice welcomed every visitor at Ebac’s reception.

But the poster is no longer needed; it’s being replaced by a touch screen device.

It’s a theme replicated throughout the foyer area, where deep blue paintwork mixes with bright posters to highlight the company’s wares.

The changes may be cosmetic, but they are reflective of a deeper evolution at the company.

Mrs Petty’s firm is developing at a rapid rate.

The business, based on Aycliffe Business Park, in County Durham, stands just weeks away from seeing its first washing machines go on sale, a venture matched by a move into the chest freezer sector.

As we walk along a corridor in the factory, Mrs Petty stops in front of a window.

The scene on the other side of the glass makes her pause in admiration.

Down below, the plant hums with activity.

Washing machine housings are lined up on a production line, their silver drums stacked neatly close by.

In the foreground, dehumidifiers – the company’s bedrock for its expansion – come to life before being swaddled in cardboard packaging ready for delivery.

Mrs Petty’s feeling of pride and excitement is obvious.

It should be.

As managing director of the family-run Ebac Group, she is responsible for steering its progress as it jostles for position in the ultra-competitive white goods market.

The washing machines are the crux of that journey.

A £7m project, the endeavour will put Ebac as the only UK-based maker of the appliance, filling a void left behind when Indesit took production of Hotpoint machines to Italy.

Mrs Petty says Ebac could make more than 200,000 every year, and has hopes of sales touching 50,000 in the first year.

The business doesn’t expect to dominate the sector, but, Mrs Petty says, if it can lure a small fraction of a market where about three million appliances are sold in the UK every year, it will be a success.

The firm has made about 50 washing machines so far, with a good number of them used as experimental units for thousands of hours of testing.

Our tour takes us into a room used for such scrutineering.

In front of me, a washer is programmed to carry out a certain cycle.

Inside it, materials whir back and forth.

I’ve been to the factory on previous occasions and it was the same then.

Over and over, again and again; the process has been endless in the quest for absolute quality.

Regulations state the machinery must be able to tackle a multitude of stains, marks and blemishes at a certain level.

As I look at test strips of fabric, Mrs Petty tells me the washers are doing what they should, and more.

The project is tantalisingly close to fruition, and while minor tweaks are to be addressed, she says she fully expects the machines to be on sale later this year.

“The testing has included everything from stacking them high to make sure it can be done in a warehouse, to life-testing components”, she reveals.

“We’ve spent hours and hours opening and closing doors too, to make sure they withstand any wear and tear.

“We know washing machines inside and out.

“We have 16 variants and they are made to meet the needs of British families.

“It’s great that, as a British company, we are making them in this country, but they have to be right for the people using them.

“We will always make them here.

“What you can’t do is put the UK brand on something and then give people a rubbish product.

“A washing machine is a washing machine, but we’ve got features we think will give customers things they need, such as dual fill, a setting called My Wash so people can have their own preference, and a liquid boat.

“In the first year, it would be great if we could get 50,000 sales; that would be amazing.”

Ebac’s assault on the white goods sector has been bolstered by Currys, which will take two models online.

Mrs Petty tells me retailers have been a little reluctant to welcome a new player into the game, for fear of diluting their existing range.

However, she’s more than confident Ebac can ride such wavering, which she expects to dissipate one the firm’s products go on sale.

She says: “The deal is all done and sorted; we know the products they are getting and we know the price points, so we’re good to go.

“They will be online, but we hope to develop sales through Currys so we can get the appliances in stores.

“It would be great to see them in most of UK shops, so people can go and look at one.

“To be with Currys is massive and it gives us real credibility.”

Industry standing is nothing new to Ebac, with the company accustomed to being a market leader, particularly for its dehumidifiers.

That status hasn’t yet transferred to chest freezers, but Mrs Petty has every confidence over its Norfrost adventure.

The firm previously bought the collapsed Icetech Freezers, moving production of its Norfrost domestic freezer range from the Scottish Highlands to Radius Products’ former plant in Aycliffe.

Icetech buckled after the demise of electrical retailer Comet and competition from cheaper Chinese imports, and Ebac moved quickly to buy the Norfrost name, equipment, designs and copyright agreements.

Its freezers, branded Norfrost by Ebac, are now on sale.

“The freezers are in production and up for sale,” says Mrs Petty brightly, her tone revealing a relief the project is moving forward.

The business previously suffered delays with machinery, most notably faults with the manufacturing of freezer foam, but those frustrations are long gone.

Sitting in an office, its quiet space a stark contrast to the hubbub of the shop floor, she tells me how the business has improved its offerings.

“We’ve had to change to comply with regulations and we have amended the fast-freeze option too”, she reveals.

“They are now very versatile and people can put them where they want, be that in a utility room, a garage or a conservatory; they will work there.

“It’s all about trying to get the product in front of people, just like the washing machines.

“We have to make people feel the benefits of our products against the competition and that they are right for those buying them.

“We do not want to sell anyone a bum deal.

“We have taken a lot on, but we think we have the right products and now we need to sell them.”

Ebac’s freezer foray wasn’t just another company expansion, it was a growth story played out to millions on television.

Put under the spotlight by former CBI director general Lord Digby Jones, the company was central to his show, The New Troubleshooter.

When issues arose, Lord Jones wasn’t shy in delivering his disappointment.

But his advice had an effect.

“He really gets under the skin of things, and I don’t think the documentary did justice to that”, says Mrs Petty.

“He didn’t just waltz in, spend five minutes here and then waltz back out.

“He spent hours here and asked a lot of questions.”

Ultimately, it’s the nation’s hearts, rather than its television screens Mrs Petty is focused on, and when I ask her if she has any regrets about the white goods expansion, the response is swift.

“We are market-leading in dehumidifiers and water coolers; with washing machines it’s different”, she adds.

“We are the kings of the dehumidifier, but we have to make sure we keep spinning the plates because dehumidifiers, along with the rest of the business, are really important to us.

“They are our bread and butter.

“It has been hard but if you want to do something right, it is not about doing it quickly.

“It’s about getting the best washing machine we can out on the market.

“We have learned all-sorts; it’s really easy to say with hindsight we could have done this or we could have done that.

“But I’ve got absolutely no regrets at all.

“It will be hard because the competition will not sit back or stand still; the UK is a good market and they will want to stay in it.

“But if we can take a little bit from one and little bit from another, I’ll be happy.

“We’re through the hard work of product development.

“Now we have to convince people to buy them.”