CONTINUED investment is the key to keeping Pennine Weavers ahead of the game.

Boss and co-owner Gary Eastwood says the Keighley operation is the most highly invested-in weaving mill in England and one of the highest in Europe.

“The success of the business is based around our investment strategies – machinery, IT and systems and, essentially, people," he said.

“We are constantly reinvesting profit back into the business – around 10 per cent of turnover per annum, or around £450,00 a year, over a five-year cycle."

Pennine Weavers, which employs 78 people on a three-shift system, produces 35,000 metres of cloth a week using 32 modern Dornier looms and is the largest worsted weaver in the country.

It has invested heavily in the preparation side of the operation, including a state-of-the-art drawing-in machine which was only the second of its kind in the world.

“The machine was a major step forward in taking out a piece of kit that was 18 years old and replacing it with something that was really state-of-the-art,” said Mr Eastwood.

Pennine also invested in a new single-end warping machine which enables it to make an increased number of warps each week to meet a demand for shorter runs as customers hold less stock and also look for sample lengths of as little as 15 metres.

“You have to adapt and go where the markets are and we invest accordingly," he said. "We have ordered a second single-end warping machine which should be in place later this month.

“That means we have a totally unique and exclusive preparation department and can offer our customers the ultimate flexibility in terms of short-length work and quick turnaround.

“Being more flexible is vital and having the right culture is essential to staying at the forefront of the industry."

Investing in workforce skills and culture is the second key plank in Pennine’s strategy.

“We have a very loyal, highly-skilled, motivated workforce," he said.

“Also, the investment they see in machinery and systems gives employees confidence that they’ve got long-term sustainability and we’re a business that always has a decent sized order book so they’re not concerned for their jobs and can plan around that."

Since he bought into the company in 2001, Mr Eastwood has reduced the average age of the workforce from 55 to 44 and trained people up, including the firm’s current apprentice Adam Powsky, 18, from Denholme, who is a trainee overlooker and loom technician.

At the other end of the scale is mill manager Mick Cook, now Mr Eastwood's second in command, who joined Pennine 20 years ago as a weaver.

The third key investment strand is IT, which enables detailed monitoring of all processes to ensure quality and productivity.

While Pennine deals directly with UK cloth producers, they in turn sell fabrics to Savile Row and leading design houses such as Burberry, Prada, Armani, Ralph Lauren and other top couture brands.