SMART BUILD SPOTLIGHT: Frameclad’s customer-first approach

⏱️ 3 min read

Welcome to another episode of SMART BUILD SPOTLIGHT, where we profile construction businesses that are using innovative building processes to build better buildings more efficiently. These companies are pushing the boundaries of industrialised construction and achieving some impressive results along the way.

In this episode, we explore how Frameclad grew into one of the UK's leading manufacturers of light steel framing solutions in just 16 short years - and how they are looking to double turnover in the next five.

Watch the SMART BUILD SPOTLIGHT video OR read the article below to get the full story.

Back in 1991 when Frameclad Joint Managing Director, Martin Jamieson’s hair was slightly less grey, he began his career in the construction industry. In 2002, Martin’s then-employer ordered their first Howick machine, and Martin began producing steel framing, mainly for the housing industry.

In 2009, he began supplying a promising start-up with steel framing - Frameclad. Little did he know, over a decade later he would be a Joint Managing Director of the company, and they would be one of the leading suppliers of light steel framing in the UK.

Martin Jamieson, Frameclad Joint Managing Director.

Martin, his co-Managing Director, Nik Teagle, and the Frameclad team have been busy. They have built two factories, spanning 50,000 square feet in Kingswinford, West Midlands. One houses the manufacturing arm, home to seven roll-forming machines, including Howick machines, and the other houses the assembly facility. In 2022 they acquired Design and Consultancy Solutions (DACS) and now have a talented team of designers and engineers inhouse.

Frameclad now provides an end to end manufacturing service, from design through to delivering panels or a kit-of-parts to site.

“There’s nothing we won’t do.”

One of the main reasons Frameclad has been so successful is their relentless commitment to giving their customers what they want. Light gauge steel framing makes this process easy – it is incredibly versatile, accurate, durable, nearly waste-free, and cuts build times significantly - but Frameclad’s uniquely flexible approach certainly helps too:

“If you want a linear metre of metal, you can have a linear metre of metal. If you want a 10-story building, you can have that as well, and anything in between. So, we're quite agile in that respect. There's nothing we won't do,” Martin said.

At present, customer demand for load-bearing manufactured frames means those products make up about 75% of their current production (the rest is stud and track for the infill market).  Martin explains that the process for producing these panelised frames has not changed for a long time:

“… We do all the design inhouse. We issue that to the guys in production. They'll allocate the work slots out and manufacture control sheets and then they'll get their work orders, put them on the machines, roll them. If they're going to be assembled here, they'll be stillaged [moved with trolleys] and sent over the road.”

Over the road, you will find Frameclad employees busy assembling panels and preparing them for shipping. All in all, there are 75 employees split across the UK working towards the same goals. Ten of them are remote, 20 are in the Northeast where Martin is based, and the rest are in the Kingswinford factory and assembly facilities. Martin explains that the disciplines are separate enough that with clear, regular communication, the distance has not been a problem.

“What happened 4-5 years ago with the joys of COVID … it took it to another level of communication. Everybody discovered Teams, even though they already had it for years,” Martin laughed.

When everything doesn’t go right all the time

Frameclad aims to always work around what their client needs, and this flexibility has served them well as they have grown. But Martin admits, results are usually better if they are engaged early to maximise savings in the project overall.

Engagement always starts with the same open, transparent quoting. From there, it is all about focusing on results:

“We do what we need to do to keep the customer happy. If things don't go right, and not everything goes right all the time, our reaction is to resolve it for the customer first and then deal with it later.”

Image courtesy of Frameclad.

Martin adds that their customers love working with Frameclad because of their detail-oriented approach:

“I think even from an estimating point of view at the outset, there's nothing that we don't look at for people. We look at anything and everything. Our reaction times and turnaround are good for that. The level of information and transparency we give. And that's through everything, through manufacturing, delivery. That's what we pride ourselves on, really.”

Their secrets to success

As well as their transparency, Frameclad has succeeded because of their team culture, their focus on relentless innovation, and drive to deliver better results for their customers. One of the key cogs in that machine is, of course, the technology they use.

Initially, Frameclad bought their roll-formed steel from other companies, but as it grew that no longer made sense. It was time to purchase their own roll-forming machines, which gave them another level of flexibility and control.

Martin had been working with the Howick 75mm machine since 2002 in his previous employment, and when he joined Frameclad they already had experience with Howick machines so choosing a new machine was not hard:

“It was a fairly easy decision because it was what we were comfortable with, what we knew.  And it’s a good product, why wouldn’t you?”

The reason the Howick, Frameclad relationship works, Martin says, is not just because of the quality of the machines:

“What we are like as a business and what you guys are like - it’s very much about people … and having relationships and the ability to speak to people on a business level and on a personal level it’s a great place to be … Everybody’s at the end of a phone if needs be. And that’s the way it should be.”

Doubling turnover despite headwinds

Frameclad certainly has the technology, the people, and the culture to continue their growth. But Martin sees a few headwinds for the industry as a whole. One, he says, is that the industry is not working together as well as it might, to grow the market share of light steel framing:

“It's still a growing sector, but it could grow quicker, probably if we're all joined up a little bit more. And that's always been a tough battle, as they say.”

Another is the perception of modern methods of construction (MMC), and the challenge of educating and attracting the right people:

“... Even though it [light gauge steel] is used a lot within the industry, it's still not a familiar product. If you go to a college, chances are, if you do a construction course, you will not come across light steel framing ….”

”Construction is going to be hard over the next few years to get enough people within the industry.”

Despite the challenges the industry faces, Martin is confident:

“We’re in a good place. We’ve grown, we’ve got more growing to do but we think we’ve built a team for the next five years and beyond, and that’s where we really want to be.”

Image courtesy of Frameclad.

“We want to empower the team we’ve got to take it on to the next level.”

“We’re looking to grow it from where we are now … and over the next five years we’ll probably double turnover.”

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