LAMINATE worktop maker Wilsonart has acquired a rival company for an undisclosed sum.

Wilsonart, in Shildon, County Durham, has bought Orama Holdings, which has factories in Derbyshire and Wetherby, West Yorkshire.

The deal doubles the size of Wilsonart's UK operations, and takes its number of employees to more than 200 from 115.

Globally, Wilsonart is a market leader with a turnover of $1bn a year.

In the UK, it had only the Shildon factory, which has an annual turnover of about £35m.

The company bought the Shildon plant in the late 1990s and, since then, has developed the factory into a successful manufacturing operation, making worktops and components for kitchens, supplying DIY retailers, kitchen distributers and builders merchants.

Orama makes kitchen, bathroom and bedroom worksurfaces at its two production sites and has a turnover of about £25m a year.

While its main site is in Derbyshire, it bought the second site in Wetherby in June 2003, and employs about 125 people in total at both factories.

Dale Alexander, managing director of Wilsonart, said: "This acquisition further strengthens the commitment to our UK manufacturing operations and the expansion of laminate decorative surfaces. We are excited by this new venture and look forward to integrating the Orama operation under the Wilsonart banner, helping to further strengthen our market position."

A spokesman said: "This deal doubles the size of the Wilsonart business in the UK. It is going to make the company a big player in the marketplace.

"The two companies serve quite similar markets."

Wilsonart recently spent £750,000 on equipment at its Shildon plant.

The majority of sales from the Shildon factory are in the UK.

Wilsonart bought the Shildon factory from former Darlington Football Club chairman George Reynolds in 1998.

Since Wilsonart took over, it has increased turnover each year.