Royal Visit for Harrison Spinks

Mr Tim Hare, one of the Queen’s representatives for West Yorkshire, visited our brand new £2.5 million Innovation Centre to present the awards to our chairman, Peter Spinks, Managing Director, Simon Spinks and buyer, Daniel Spinks – three generations of the family currently involved in the business on behalf of the entire company.

The awards were granted in April in recognition of outstanding success in Innovation and International Trade.

The award for Innovation was granted in recognition of development of novel manufacturing processes for sprung mattresses. Mattress comfort is improved as spring concentration increases, however, technical issues across the bed making sector have meant that spring density is limited by the gauge of wire used. We have managed to solve a whole series of problems to reduce the diameter of wire used by 30 per cent. Working in partnership with British Steel, a unique grade of steel has been developed, along with a refined drawing process to create the fine wire. We have also developed patented spring making machines that work at five times the speed of traditional machinery.

The Queen’s Award for International Trade for Outstanding Short Term Growth in Overseas Sales was granted following a 296 per cent increase in exports. Internationally, we trade in over 50 countries with joint ventures in USA and China. Now overseas sales make up 25 per cent of the company’s total sales.

Mr Hare was given a tour of our new Innovation Centre which includes a state-of-the-art sleep lab where technological innovations are developed and products are tested before visiting the 67,000 square foot manufacturing site which is being developed into a factory of the future. Mr Hare met some of the 600-strong workforce who hand-make our luxury mattresses, beds and divans.

Simon Spinks, Managing Director for Harrison Spinks said: “We are delighted to welcome Mr Hare to our brand new Innovation Centre to receive the two Queen’s Awards for Enterprise.

“The awards are a testament to the hard work and creativity of our team. The Harrison Spinks brand has always been about innovation and quality. We are proud to have brought a number of firsts to the bed industry with our approach to spring technology and our vertical integration – meaning we make almost all the components in our products – sets us apart from our competitors.

“Our ambition is to change the way the world sleeps, and we feel that the award for International Trade confirms that we are starting to achieve that goal.”

Harrison Spinks is the only bed company to have been granted two Queen’s Awards for Enterprise on two occasions. In 2013, we were granted two Queen’s Awards for Enterprise for Innovation and Sustainability, the 2018 awards bring the total count to four.