Reshoring Of Ergonomic Knife Range Slices Production Time

The updated range of knives is the result of a complete design make-over of their original kitchen range. Managing Director, Genny Crockett, says “We have always been proud of the ergonomics and functionality of our Peta Easi-Grip® knives, however, we were not so proud of the look of them. We worked with a design student who developed a much curvier shape which we loved and introduced a vibrant colour. The result is a really funky design yet still retains the integrity of the ergonomic design principles.”

The final stage of the transition of these knives to the new generation was to move production to UK. Genny says “With so many sales online these days it is difficult to differentiate and show a commitment to quality. We already make a large percentage of our products in UK; so we became members of the ‘Made in Britain’ campaign as we believe this to be a mark of quality.”

Peta (UK) Ltd worked closely with Skar Precision Mouldings Ltd in Hadleigh, Suffolk, to organise the shipping of tooling from China to UK. The tooling was professionally assessed by Skar’s technical team and some work carried out to give a more consistent finish before finally being used for a production run.

Brian McLellan, Technical Sales Director, says ‘We have been working with PETA for many years and were extremely enthusiastic about helping them to move production of these parts to the UK. This is one of a number of projects that we have brought from China back to the UK this year, which in all cases has made commercial sense for our customers’.

Genny agrees “Reshoring production to UK means that we have more control over the process; if there are any problems we can visit Skar to discuss a solution. Our lead-times are also dramatically reduced and small-batch manufacture is something Skar is used to working with.”

John Pearce, Chief Executive of the Made in Britain Campaign is very upbeat about this crucial sector: “we’re delighted to have the world famous Easi-Grip® inventors and manufacturers Peta (UK) Ltd working with us to help promote that their products are designed, developed and Made in Britain. Being an exemplary British exporter means Peta (UK) Ltd products are reaching buyers and consumers in many other countries who will also see the genuine design and manufacturing legacy”.