The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
CoorsTek supplying key parts for Covid-19 fight
GLENROTHES: Vital components for thermometers and ventilators made in Fife
A Fife-based technical ceramics firm has rapidly produced key components to be used in the fight against Covid-19.
CoorsTek Ltd, which has a 100,000 sq ft base in Glenrothes, supplies products which are used in the medical and automotive industries.
The firm changed shift patterns to achieve social distancing to fulfil the urgent order for critically import thermometer parts for a client.
CoorsTek is also producing vital parts used in ventilators for an order which will ship this week.
Plant manager Mark Cameron said: “We have implemented new ways of working based on best practice relating to manufacturing plants during Covid-19.
“This has involved several administrative and engineering departments working from home as well as strict social distancing procedures for those in the facility.”
Mr Cameron said communication had been key during the challenging times.
“We have regular plant-wide meetings and we hold two virtual staff meetings per day for key home workers.
“We have found that a greater emphasis on communications has given us a much deeper understanding of our clients’ needs and this will, we hope, see the development of new products to the market in due course,” he said.
Mr Cameron said the firm continued to produce significant volumes of components used across medical applications, which are not all Covid-19 related, including parts used in medical pumps, MRI and other imaging devices.
He said: “Across the globe, every two minutes someone receives treatment for cancer using equipment containing parts that are manufactured here in Glenrothes.”
The firm, founded in America is more than a century old with its headquarters in Golden, Colorado.
The Glenrothes branch was established in 1981 and has a head count of 75 across six buildings at the substantial site.
Glenrothes is the longest established CoorsTek facility outside America and played a pivotal role in the company’s expansion into Europe where it now has nine centres.
Sales of the items manufactured at Glenrothes are split between the UK and Europe, with Germany being the largest market.
Perhaps best known for its brewing heritage under the Coors name, the company expanded into a number of sectors which has included the manufacture of pottery and china, body armour and components used in electronic circuits.