Tierco acquires storage manufacturer Sperrin Metal Products
Rob Healy, Chairman of Tierco Group Board and Ryan Tierney, Managing Director of Sperrin Metal Products.
Draperstown-headquartered Sperrin Metal Products Ltd has been acquired by Tierco Group, the owners of successful Limavady-based specialist therapeutic seating manufacturer Seating Matters.
One of the last independently owned storage manufacturers in the UK and Ireland, Sperrin Metal Products Ltd was established in 1963 by a committee of local business people to provide employment in the Draperstown area.
The company employs over 100 people in its manufacturing facilities across the UK and Ireland, including its 150,000 sq ft site in Draperstown, specialising in the manufacture of storage systems such as racking, shelving, mezzanines, lockers, and cubicles. It counts household names like Nissan, Coca-Cola Cola and the NHS amongst its customers.
Tierco Group has acquired 100% of Sperrin Metal Products from its previous owner, Peter Gormley for an undisclosed sum.
Following the acquisition, Ryan Tierney, previously Operations Director at Seating Matters, becomes Managing Director of Sperrin Metal Products. Current Managing Director Peter Gormley will become the new Commercial Director of the business.
Ryan Tierney, Managing Director of Sperrin Metal Products said: “Sperrin Metal Products is a brand known to anyone in the manufacturing world and respected as a prestigious employer and key part of the local community. When we learned there was an opportunity to purchase the business from Peter, we were excited by the potential that existed to build on the fantastic legacy they have created. I believe that Sperrin Metal can achieve significant growth in future, and to achieve that goal we plan to invest in both new jobs and new plant and machinery.”
Tierco Group is owned by brothers Martin, Jonathan and Ryan Tierney. It comprises Tierco Healthcare, Tierco Investments and Tierco Manufacturing. Sperrin Metal has been acquired by the manufacturing division.
The new owners are particularly interested in the Middle East, including Dubai, as a growth area due to the increase in development of data centres, factories and warehousing in the region.
Rob Healy, Chairman of Tierco Group Board, said: “We are excited about the acquisition of Sperrin Metal Products and the potential which this well-respected business has for further growth, both in its current markets and beyond. The Tierco board looks forward to working closely with Peter and the team at Sperrin Metal to realise these ambitions.”
Ryan Tierney is the creator of the successful Lean Made Simple YouTube channel and podcast, which went to No.1 on the Irish business podcasts list and has published a book of the same name. He intends to create a documentary about the implementation of Lean processes at Sperrin Metal Productsand is currently in talks with a major streaming platform.
Ryan explains: “We have had over 3,000 people from local and global companies visit the Seating Matters factory to observe how we have embedded Lean into our culture and see how we continue to make improvements daily. As more companies adopt it, Ireland is fast becoming a world leader in Lean.
“We want to show that it’s possible to find a better way of doing things even in a well-established, 60-year-old company.”