Wheel firm is aTitan in the industry
Products used across the world
AMIDLAND manufacturing “hidden gem” is going strong in Kidderminster as a world leader in making some of the biggest specialised wheels in the world.
The Post went inside Titan Steel Wheel’s bustling canalside factory in Cookley, which makes off-highway wheels used by gold miners and workers building the new Silk Road in China.
Titan has a £40m yearly turnover from products described as “rolling around on every country” and is the “Saville Row of wheel manufacturing”.
It has more than 350 workers, including skilled mechanical and electrical engineers.
They make specialist wheels up to 35 inches in diameter, used by the biggest names in the construction industry, including at Australia’s Cadia gold mines and the second busiest port in the world, Singapore.
Sparks fly and there’s the scent of metal and paint in the air as steel is welded and manipulated into wheels for earth movers and more.
The firm has over 110 years of experience, first making wheels in 1911. Some niche equipment sitting alongside latest technology is no longer made.
Titan is also a well-known name in the area as it sponsors Kidderminster Harriers football team. Abroad, it’s renowned further still, winning four Queen’s Awards for innovation and international trade, with 98% of what’s made in Cookley being exported.
CEO Chris Akers said: “With our long history and supplying all the big yellow brand construction names, there can’t be a country in the world that hasn’t got a wheel rolling around from us in Cookley.
The factory is a hidden gem. “We’re still going strong. Order books are healthy and there’s every indication that we’ll be going for another 100 years. It’s a fantastic business and not the kind you find anymore.”
Chris added: “We got lucky as years ago, a previous German owner took over the other wheels and left us with these specialist ones.
“We thought that would be the first nail in the coffin but fortunately it ended up saving us as it’s a niche bespoke product.
“Titan is the only company in the world where the factory solely specialises in this type of wheel.
“That’s why we’ve been so successful as we’ve had a lot of brains focus on it. The business is part of the community and we have to be a good neighbour and good employer.”
The company, which became part of US Titan International Inc in 2012, is based on an historic site on the Stafford and Worcester Canal. It has been used continuously for manufacturing since as far back as 1650.
Alex Willmott, general manager, said: “The wheels got bigger and while we don’t make truck and bus wheels any more, we focus on large mining and earth moving equipment.
“We are a world leader in it and noone makes more wheels per year than we do. There are only about four firms in the world that can do the same. We design wheels, do the testing and make them – we are a one-stop shop.”