Family-owned company Ebac, of Bishop Auckland, County Durham, is recruiting production staff thanks to increasing sales of its home water cooler.

Selling in the UK for £79.95p, it cools six-litre bottles at a time.

The jobs will increase Ebac's workforce by 15 per cent to 350, bucking the national downturn in manufacturing jobs.

Founded in 1972, the company is already the European market leader for commercial water coolers and a brand leader in domestic and industrial dehumidifiers.

Chairman John Elliott said Ebac was competing with companies from all over the world and winning.

He said: "Our view is that UK firms can succeed in manufacturing provided they invest in people, products and processes.

"Companies that move overseas often incur costs elsewhere that cancel out the savings offered by reduced labour costs.

"Ebac is like a family. We are all under the same roof and we all depend on each other. At the end of the day, we deliver what the customer wants.

"This straightforward approach to business served British industry well in the most prosperous times in our history. We are confident it will continue to deliver further success at Ebac.

"Our orders are shipped to places including Hong Kong, the US, mainland Europe, the Middle East and South Africas as well as in the UK. We place a high priority on quality and value."