Forged Solutions Group
Masters of Metal
From aerospace and energy production, to underground mining and off-highway vehicles, we have forged solutions for advanced manufacturing industries for more than 100 years
Having a global reputation for successfully working with some of the world’s most demanding materials has ensured Forged Solutions Group’s position as a key supplier in the global forging industry. The company’s highly skilled team provides comprehensive design-for-manufacturing support, as well as advanced forging capabilities, heat treatment, machining and world-class materials testing. By offering integrated solutions, Forged Solutions Group is a one-stop-shop for many high-profile blue-chip customers across the world.
Forged Solutions Group itself was formed at the end of 2019 as the direct result of two acquisitions by Arlington Capital Partners, a Washington, D.C.-based private equity firm.
These acquisitions saw Blaenavon Forgings Ltd and Firth Rixon Forgings Ltd combine to become Forged Solutions Group; the company as it exists today retains over 100 years’ worth of industry process knowledge and expertise, under a new, streamlined brand.
“They were both recognised players in the global forging industry. Arlington Capital Partners, who acquired the businesses, held a concept for the merger that involved creating a forging group that would manage mid-market sized contracts for a range of blue-chip customers,” explains Ben McIvor, President of Forged Solutions.
“Our customer base and geographical reach spans from North America, through Europe and over to the Far East. Forged Solutions Group was founded with the intent to continue to support this long-standing customer base with high-integrity forgings to meet the challenges that our customers face not just today but in the future,” he adds.
As a service-orientated company, Forged Solutions Group works closely with its customers, many of whom have partnered with the business for many years. “Our customer base is made up mostly of large blue-chip OEMs in the aerospace, off highway and mining markets,” states Jon Winter, Commercial Director of Forged Solutions Group. “We have long standing relationships with Rolls Royce, GE, Safran, Honeywell, Caterpillar, Pratt & Whitney, Komatsu and Collins to name but a few. We primarily serve the engine and auxiliary power unit aspects of the aerospace industry alongside a vast array of off highway end applications as this is where our expertise and capability can really shine,” he goes on.
Clearly so much more than the sum of its parts, Forged Solutions Group has become a successful entity in its own right. The company’s dedicated workforce, and extensive depth of forging knowledge, have ensured this, as Jon discusses: “One of the things we have across the group is a tremendous amount of technical knowledge and capability. We have a large amount of knowhow, particularly when it comes to steels, nickels and titanium. We also have certain capabilities that are unique; our Meadowhall facility, for example, deploys a process whereby we are capable of completing a forward and backward extrusion process simultaneously and therefore has the unique capability of being able to significantly reduce the input material. This is itself offers our customers a unique opportunity to reduce the amount of material that is required to manufacture the finished product.
“Another very important aspect of our group is that we are fully integrated from one end of the manufacturing process to the other. We can forge, heat treat, machine, and test almost all of our customers products requirements in-house.”
As restrictions begin to ease and the ‘new normal’ is on the horizon, Forged Solutions Group looks toward an exciting future. “As we begin 2022, we are starting to see strong orderbook growth in the markets and customers we serve. Our off highway and mining customers have shown great resilience during the last two years and we now see growth for 2022 and beyond. Within the aerospace market, we are experiencing significant growth in 2022, related to the narrow-body aircraft demand recovery, whilst the impact of the recovery to pre-pandemic levels, in the wide body sector, is not expected to be seen for another two years.”
As the company continues to grow and develop, it also seeks to diversify its offering, and bring new solutions to well-established markets, as Jon asserts: “We recognise that although Forged Solutions Group does have longstanding focus on the aerospace market, it’s also good to have a wider portfolio in order to provide support in other sectors. Where the aerospace industry has dropped off, we have picked up new business in areas such as electric vehicle production, and nuclear research and manufacturing. We are also investing in forging research institutes in order to be at the forefront of new forged product development in these growing markets.”
Over the next 12 months, Forged Solutions Group will be putting in motion a number of promising new projects and developments. “In 2022, we our revenue is forecasted to be at least 35 percent up on 2021. We will continue to work collaboratively with our customer base to explore ways on how we can grow our existing market share as well as provide solutions the new challenges that present themselves.
“There will also be a continued focus on making good investments; we have already signaled our intent to bring new technologies in to our manufacturing sites with the recent purchase of new CNC machine capabilities and ultra-sonic testing equipment, this will be complemented by some of the more softer types of investment such as local charity work, as well as refurbishments at various offices and facilities.”
After two years of successfully overcoming major challenges related to the pandemic, Forged Solutions Group continues to go from strength to strength. As a company imbued with dedication, entrepreneurial spirit and innate curiosity, Forged Solutions Group certainly knows where it’s going, as Ben highlights: “In the long-term we have two main goals. First of all, we want to increase the group’s capabilities through acquisition, and secondly, we aim to continue expanding our revenue streams whether by new wins or extending existing relationships.”
The company also continues to harness the potential of its people through a respectful and mutually beneficial working culture. “In the last 24 months we have successfully rolled out a new brand and identity, the next phase of that journey is to launch our vision, mission and values. In one way, shape or form all those values are embedded within our business, employees, recruitment process, literature, and reward and recognition scheme, so it’s something we really want to highlight and leverage as we move forward,” reveals Ben.
Our Vision statement:
At Forged Solutions Group we aspire to be the preferred global partner of choice in the supply of forged products for our customers’ most demanding end applications.
Our Mission statement:
Through understanding, collaboration, creative engineering, and by leveraging our extensive group wide resources, our mission is to offer high integrity technical solutions to the challenges our customers face every day.
‘There is always a solution’.
Our Values:
Quality – Integrity – Commitment – Collaboration
In conclusion Ben adds: “We are working to improve all facets of our business and therefore the offering to our valued customers; we are excited for the future of Forged Solutions Group.”
Forged Solutions Group
www.forged-solutions.com
Services: Forged products for industry