UK Electronics Expansion Moves Into Its Next Phase

After months of construction, planning and a few challenges along the way, UK Electronics’ major site expansion is approaching an important milestone.

The new extension is nearing handover, with the first teams expected to begin moving into the new office space during October.

But moving desks is only the beginning.

The office relocation marks the first phase of a much larger transition that will ultimately create additional manufacturing space, increase production capacity and improve the flow of work throughout the UK Electronics facility.

Once the extension is handed over, work will begin on preparing the new manufacturing areas before stores and production equipment can start moving into their new locations.

It’s the point at which the expansion starts moving from a construction project to a working part of UK Electronics’ manufacturing operation.

The First Move: New Offices

The first teams to relocate into the extension will include purchasing, sales, technical, quality and finance.

Moving these departments into the purpose-built office space does more than provide the team with a new working environment.
It also releases the existing office areas for the next stage of the project.

Those areas will be converted into additional production space, allowing UK Electronics to make better use of the existing factory alongside the newly constructed extension.

This has always been an important part of the wider expansion plan.

Rather than simply adding another building to the site, the project creates an opportunity to reconsider how departments, materials and manufacturing processes move through the entire facility.

Preparing the New Manufacturing Space

The extension may be nearing handover, but there is still considerable work to complete before the manufacturing areas become operational.

Following handover, ESD flooring will be installed within the relevant areas of the extension.

Electrostatic discharge control is an important consideration within electronics manufacturing, helping provide an appropriate environment for handling and producing sensitive electronic components and assemblies.

The new stores area will also be fitted with a completely new racking system before stock and materials can begin moving across.

Once these preparations are complete, the transition of manufacturing operations can begin.

The stores department will be one of the first major operational areas to move into its new purpose-built space.
From there, attention will turn to the SMT production areas.

Expanding SMT Production Capacity

Surface mount technology remains a central part of UK Electronics’ electronics manufacturing capability, and the expanded facility has been designed with future production requirements in mind.

The new layout will provide space for the planned SMT production lines while retaining dedicated space for a fourth SMT line when future demand requires further expansion.

That fourth line isn’t being installed as part of the current phase, but designing the space for it now means additional SMT capacity can be introduced in the future without requiring another major reorganisation of the factory.

UK Electronics has also ordered an additional reflow oven and a component oven as part of the investment in the expanded manufacturing operation.

The additional equipment will support the increased production capacity being created across the site and form part of the wider improvements to manufacturing throughput.

Improving Manufacturing Flow Across the Entire Factory

One of the most important parts of the project will happen after the new areas begin operating.

As stores and SMT operations move into their new locations, the existing factory can begin to be repurposed.

The objective is to improve process flow between departments, creating a more logical manufacturing journey through the facility and reducing unnecessary movement between different stages of production.

The new ESD flooring will also be continued throughout the existing building as part of this work.

This means the project isn’t simply about creating more floor space.

It provides an opportunity to reconsider how the complete manufacturing facility operates.

Better use of space, improved departmental flow and additional production capacity should allow UK Electronics to handle higher production volumes, larger projects and increased throughput, while supporting improved turnaround times as demand grows.

Building Capacity for the Future

When UK Electronics first announced the expansion, the objective was to significantly increase manufacturing capacity and create a facility capable of supporting the company’s next stage of growth.

That remains the objective.

The new extension increases the overall footprint of the site, but the real benefit comes from what the additional space allows UK Electronics to do with both the new and existing factory.

• Moving offices releases further production space.
• Moving stores creates a purpose-built area for material management.
• Relocating SMT operations creates additional manufacturing capacity.
• Repurposing the existing factory then allows the production layout to be improved around the way work actually moves between departments.

Together, those changes will help UK Electronics support greater production volumes while maintaining the quality, consistency and manufacturing control required throughout electronic assembly.

It also creates room for further investment, with the provision for a fourth SMT line already incorporated into the facility for future expansion.

A Nine-Month Transition

Although moving into the new offices represents a major milestone, transforming the complete site won’t happen overnight.

Following handover, UK Electronics expects the full transition and retrofit programme to take approximately nine months.

During that period, the new stores area will be prepared and populated, SMT operations will begin moving into their new locations and areas of the existing factory will progressively be repurposed.

Taking a phased approach allows the business to carry out a significant reorganisation of its manufacturing facility while continuing to support existing production requirements.

Once complete, UK Electronics will have a larger and more logically organised manufacturing environment designed around increased capacity, improved throughput and future growth.

More Than an Extension

Reaching this stage has taken longer than originally anticipated.

As with many major construction projects, there have been building challenges to overcome along the way. But with the extension now approaching handover, the focus is shifting from construction to what the additional space was created to achieve.

The move into the new offices is the first tangible step.

What follows is a much larger transformation of the UK Electronics facility.

Over the coming months, departments will move, production areas will be reorganised and additional equipment will be introduced as the new and existing buildings become one integrated manufacturing operation.

For customers, the result will ultimately be greater manufacturing capacity, improved production flow, increased throughput and the ability to support larger and higher-volume electronics manufacturing projects.

And with space already planned for further SMT expansion, the facility has been designed not just around today’s requirements, but around what comes next.

The building work may be approaching its conclusion.
The next phase of UK Electronics’ expansion is only just beginning.