Pickersgill-Kaye locks into overseas sales success

Leeds lock manufacture Pickersgill-Kaye Ltd has posted sales of more than £2.25m for the year ending November 2013, of which 33 per cent (£751,912) was export business – the biggest proportion of total sales the company has ever achieved.

Part of the Joseph Kaye Holdings Group, Pickersgill-Kaye, which designs and produces locks and safety products for the rail, security and custodial industries, last year won contracts with a number of well-known blue-chip names.

In North America, the company supplied Axion Technologies with  passenger alarms for Toronto Transit ‘Rocket’ subway cars and locomotive cab door locks to several train companies in the US.

In Europe, the business manufactured WC door switch units for EVAC in Germany; emergency hammer boxes for a new-build tram project in Belgium; cab door locks for Irish Rail’s 18-strong fleet of 071 class locomotives; emergency break access panels for trains in Austria; budget locks and break panels for Siemens’ Desiro trains and an ongoing supply of loco door locks for Bombardier Traxx locos.

In the Far East, Pickersgill-Kaye has received an initial order from Jardine Engineering for cell door locks and strikers for the first railway satellite police station on a new rail link between Hong Kong and China as well as  emergency egress device (EED) and emergency access device (EAD) units for Hitachi Japan, destined for trains being built for the UK.

International demand for Pickersgill-Kaye’s range of high security and custodial locks for prisons and police stations continues to increase with ongoing sales of its cell door locks, strikers and hatches to Ireland, multi-point lock to a Libyan company and Kaye-Rota padlock for France.

Pickersgill-Kaye’s sales director, Harry Griffiths, says: “Overseas sales are a growing proportion of our business. During the 12 months in question, the company has maintained exports to the three continents of Asia, America and Europe. The latest contracts have further increased our export profile and provide valuable work for our highly-experienced and committed workforce.”

The company says it is confident of strengthening its presence at home and breaking into more overseas markets overseas in 2014 with  products for companies in the rail and high security sectors.