Spooner's Far East order could lead to more deals

Spooner Industries, based in Ilkley, West Yorkshire, has won a 5m euro export order to supply drying equipment for the paper industry in the Philippines. Details about the contract cannot be revealed for reasons of commercial confidentiality, but Spooner believes that similar orders could be in the pipeline.

Spooner employs around 100 permanent staff and between 30 and 40 temporary workers. Most of the staff are based in Ilkley.

The company, which is 78-years-old, expects to make turnover of between 15m and 20m this year.

Mike Brook, the company's managing director, said: "We are very busy – and long may it continue. We have done better than most people during the recession and this is due to the spread of markets we are in.

"The bread industry in the UK has done particularly well over the last year."

The order in the Philippines was sealed after Spooner secured a 2m euro trade facility from Lloyds Banking Group, which was designed to reduce international trade risk.

One million euros of the risk mitigation backing provided by Lloyds was underwritten by the Export Credits Guarantee Department (ECGD), the UK's export credit agency. This risk-share arrangement was Lloyd's first transaction under ECGD's Letter of Credit Guarantee Scheme (LCGS), a Government scheme to encourage UK exporters. Mr Brook said: "The supply contract to our buyer in the Far East is a very significant size and the mitigation of payment risk was a vital element in enabling us to export our goods."

Spooner Industries was established by Ilkley resident, William Wycliffe Spooner in 1932.

Mr Spooner's revolutionary inventions for industrial drying equipment were soon applied to other industries including paper, metals and food.

Spooner's head office and manufacturing facilities are based in a purpose-built 4m building, which includes manufacturing space and a research and development test centre.

The head office in Ilkley, serves Europe and the Far East, while a North American sales and service office in Hillsboro, Ohio, covers North and South America.