Could Stockton's 'best kept secret' get today's youngsters off their Xboxes

BEHIND the glass frontage, wire rat traps, soil sieves, mattresses and even a dart board neatly sit as visual magnets luring in potential customers.

Alongside the unassuming store, in Stockton's Silver Street, stands a proud Francis Brown, captured in photographic form forever as he poses for a photograph next to his new venture.

Afflicted by a back injury while working in the construction industry, Francis founded the business in 1903, showing off his wares as a skilled wire worker.

The business' headquarters may not have not moved far in 110 years, but the firm's international presence certainly has, with the former black and white period now replaced by a real golden era that it wants to bolster by creating a number of new North-East jobs to continue its expansion.

Brothers Simon Brown, projects director, left, and Jamie Brown, managing director, take a walk through the factory area

Now a fourth generation company, Francis Brown Limited designs and manufactures cranes and winches for launching and recovering remote operated vehicles (ROV) in the subsea energy market, pressure vessels and incinerators for chemical firms, and sump tanks for laboratory modules in the oil and gas industries.

Renowned for its specialist welding expertise, that has been instrumental in erecting sections of the world's largest tidal turbine, now operating in the Orkney Islands, it has created a subsea socket, placed off the Cornwall coast, which allows energy providers to assess technology performance levels.

It also has a sister company, NEF Ltd, in Darlington, which designs, makes and installs security, lifting and machinery handling equipment to the automotive and onshore renewable industries.

A partnership with Aberdeen-based subsea specialist Schoolhill Hydraulic Engineering will allow it to broaden its product distribution further, with orders for fabrication frames on a drilling cutting project in Angola, pressure valves for a firm in China, and further deals in Qatar and Ghana on the horizon.

Support worker Ray Caygill assesses the plans for the pictured cradle support

Not that the company, which employs about 100 workers, will let its global success detract from its North-East links or family traditions.

Tucked away off Stockton's Church Road, the firm continues to carry on in the same conscientious and efficient mould set out by Francis, and is now overseen by managing director, Jamie Brown.

Prior to his appointment, great-grandfather Francis' son, Ernie, and Jamie's father, David, who remains chairman, took on the reins, with Jamie's brother, Simon, its current projects director.

This sense of family pride runs throughout the firm, a feeling given extra impetus when you walk through its corridors.

Its very heartbeat stands out like a beacon, with pictures and newspaper cutting of its forefathers proudly displayed alongside an image of a smiling Francis, contently looking down at his growing empire.

Neil Burns carries out welding work on an FPSO offshore platform

As I talk to Jamie, another flash of history is revealed, his shirt displaying a silver embroidered 1903 slogan.

It is a moment that was probably stitched in seconds, but remains representative of years etched in pride, hard work and success.

He said: “We are Stockton's best kept secret and very proud of what we have achieved here.

“It is a pride that comes from what we have done as a team, we have quite a long-serving workforce with good skills and have been successful together.

“The ethos has, and will always be, about high integrity, high quality and high performance.

“When my great-grandfather injured his back, he set up the business on the back of that, and we have developed from wire working to machine guards and sheet metal fabrication through to the design and manufacture of pressure valves and process equipment.

“We have evolved where the buoyant markets are and engaged with subsea technology and renewable energy.

“One of our strengths is our diverse nature and versatility and we now have one of the strongest order books in our history, a growth we are keen to continue with new and permanent jobs.”

The carbon steel fabrication shop

Mr Brown says the firm, which made fastenings for the new Teesside offshore wind farm, near Redcar, is committed to moving into new markets, including the nuclear industry and subsea sector, reflected in its latest expansion.

He said: “A large part of our work is very much in the manufacture of launch and recovery systems for ROVs, including the cranes and winches that can safely deploy and recover the equipment from the sea.

“That side of the business has built up to the point where we have invested in some new buildings to set up a production line and build these products.”

This progression should be made smoother by Francis Brown's partnership with Schoolhill, which will see the Scottish firm offer its hydraulic knowledge and expertise, in return for specialist welding support.

Mr Brown said the deal, secured through business development agency, NOF Energy, had already proved extremely beneficial.

He said: “We wanted to get into Aberdeen, and they wanted to get a base in the North-East.

“We are very similar in our mindsets and are both long established family businesses sharing the same ethos.

“For us, the market is saturated up there, and we believe we have a strong workforce and engineering skills and products to be successful in that area.

“It has already shown itself to be a good move as we have got an order from Aberdeen for fabrication frames that will end up in Angola on environmentally-friendly disposal of drill cuttings.”

Such projects demand a skilled and knowledgeable workforce, a facet overtly present at Francis Brown, whose success is built on solid foundations.

However, Mr Brown says it is fully aware of the need to nurture the next generation of workers to propel its momentum and maintain a strength and depth in the engineering industry.

He said: “Getting the skills is a real issue, we support apprenticeships and have four on the go at the moment.

“The likes of ICI and British Steel used to churn out hundreds of workers a year and take the cream off the top, with the rest going into smaller businesses.

“But that has stopped now and we are starting to see the shortages.

“There are great opportunities for people to get a foothold in engineering, but I don't think children, who look up to their teachers, are being made aware of these job opportunities.

“They understand what a banker, a doctor and a baker is, but not about the role of a ROV designer and manufacturer.

“The renewable energy industry is massive and it is really exciting stuff to be involved in.

“These jobs are not here for a couple of weeks, they are here for decades and we have got to find a way of getting these youngsters off their Xbox's, out of their bedrooms and into the factory.”