A large group of 21 U3A members met in Newton Aycliffe for the visit to EBAC Ltd.  We were lucky to be shown around by the company founder, John Elliott MBE, DL, who provided a short history of the company’s development and then, together with Amanda Hird, gave us an informative and interesting tour of the factory.

The company was set up by John in 1972 and has grown from very small beginnings (making dehumidifiers for drying timber) to the production of several lines. It currently employs 265 people. Products include de-humidifiers and water coolers, which are exported world-wide. We were taken through every stage of the manufacturing and assembly processes.  Quality control is an integral part of these processes, with checks made every two hours, enabling any problems to be traced back to source quickly.  Wherever possible components are manufactured in-house, or purchased locally. Sadly some materials are not available in this country now and so have to be imported.  Demand for some products is seasonal, and production output can be varied quickly to accommodate any changes.

The most recent product, the only British made washing machine on the market, is manufactured to very high specifications. We were shown how each separate component is formed. The machinery is capable of producing high volumes but can also be tailored to suit current demand. At present this is only sold in the UK.

We also viewed the clean room where bottles for water coolers were tested under sterile conditions to ensure they were not contaminated. Any rejected components are put to one side; only those that pass all tests are allowed to proceed into finished coolers. There is also a product development team, working on innovations to existing goods as well as new products.  These designs are then made into prototypes that are tested rigorously to ensure any improvements will meet quality and health and safety requirements, as well as being cost-effective to produce.