Renishaw's assembly facility at Woodchester in Gloucestershire has been named as the U.K.'s Best Electronics & Electrical Plant at the prestigious Best Factory Awards 2012, held on September 28th in London. The honor was achieved against strong competition from global brands, with Renishaw receiving the title ahead of Sony U.K. Technology Center and Siemens MR Magnet Technology.

The judges, led by Cranfield University's Institute of Management, noted Renishaw's “unerring commitment to in-house manufacture,” which it considers essential to ensure quality and delivery, and to support product development timescales. According to the award citation, “the combination of astute supply chain management, strategic operations planning and class-leading automated technology makes this stand-out OEM a worthy winner of the Best Electronics & Electrical Plant prize.”

The award citation also recognized Renishaw for its global leadership in the field of industrial measurement, stating, “Some manufacturers are simply synonymous with their technology area – when it comes to metrology, they don't come any bigger or better than Renishaw.”

The Woodchester facility carries out the design, development and assembly of components for a wide range of metrology products, including laser calibration devices, probe heads for co-ordinate measuring machines, laser tool setters for machine tools and optical encoders for precision position feedback.

At nearly 162,000 square feet, and with 348 employees working in manufacturing roles at the site, Renishaw's Woodchester assembly plant is the largest of four assembly facilities within the Renishaw Group. It operates within an environment of high innovation, constant change and a large range of saleable parts. The facility has full electronics production capability including printed circuit board (PCB) layout, assembly and test.

Gareth Hankins, director of Renishaw's manufacturing services division, who accepted the award with Woodchester Site Manager, Gui Festa, said: “A tremendous amount of work has gone into making Renishaw's manufacturing site at Woodchester the world class facility that it is today. It is a testament to the quality and motivation of our employees that we have won this award and all of us are very proud to be recognized in this way.”

According to Dr. Marek Szwejczewski, director of the Best Factory Awards, the U.K. is one of the top 10 manufacturers in the world. The sector is responsible for 46 percent of U.K. exports and around 2.5 million jobs.