A Cumbrian stone manufacturer has invested £1m over the last 18 months as it grows its business across the UK.

Cumbrian Stone, based on Gilwilly Industrial Estate, Penrith, began trading in 2006 with just three members of staff.

It now has a team of 14 and supplies sandstone for use in building projects up and down Britain, predominantly sourced from quarries within a 70-mile radius of their production facilities.

The company’s work can be found in towns and cities across the UK, with recent work including providing natural stone to several luxury new builds across Manchester and Cheshire and supplying stone cladding on two new Virgin Hotels in Glasgow and Edinburgh.

Closer to home their natural stones can also be found on projects including The Fratry at Carlisle Cathedral, restoration works at Carlisle Castle and on The Edge Coastal Activities Centre, in Whitehaven.

Sales and marketing manager Sam Morris says as the business has grown over recent years it has allowed the company to invest heavily back into the business, driving production efficiencies, reducing staff turnover and building up its reserves to continue moving forward.

Cumbrian Stone moved to a four-day working week with no loss of pay two years ago which, Sam says, has led to a more efficient operation when combined with their investment in new equipment and a review of their processes.

He says the Monday to Thursday four-day week came out of a desire to improve staff wellbeing and make Cumbrian Stone an even more attractive place to work.

​​"Everyone knows they've got a certain volume of work that they need to get through by the end of the week and I think people are just a little bit more focused on getting the job done and it does a lot for staff welfare as well,” he says.

“What we do isn't an easy job by any stretch of the imagination, so being able to reward our team with a three day weekend each week is a major perk for all of us. We all get the benefits of three days' rest from what is a hard job, plus only using four days of holiday a week makes your annual leave go a lot further too.”

Offering a good work life balance and competitive pay has also helped reduce staff turnover, a distinct advantage in a sector where skilled stonemasons are in short supply.

"We've made a lot of efficiency improvements through our whole production process, which has allowed us to effectively reduce production time by one day a week whilst keeping the output levels the same as we used to see over five days,” says Sam.

“In addition to benefiting our workforce’s welfare, this has also allowed us to keep our prices more competitive for our customers while still making sure our team are well rewarded for their work through above inflation pay rises and other perks too.

“We wouldn’t be as successful as we are without our team, so it’s important to make sure they are rewarded for the hard work they put in each year.”

Over the last 18 months the company has invested £1m in new machinery and new systems, including installing a new 10 metre line for polishing stone as well as new cutting saws with more capability for CNC work and automated profiling.

This is in addition to a three metre diameter circular saw that has increased capacity for processing stone from rough 10 to 20 tonne quarry blocks into workable stone slabs at the early stages of production.

"And we’re not just investing in improving our production capacity; we're also embarking on a total refurbishment and expansion of our showroom and offices," adds Sam.
“This will allow us to showcase even more natural stone products, and will also add additional value for our customers through things like our stone testing laboratory, technical and hands-on zones and enhanced professional training that we can offer.”

As part of its expansion, Cumbrian Stone has also built and adopted various AI systems to manage customer relations and administration processes.

These include systems for live enquiry management, web-based order tracking and numerous data driven accounts processes. They also utilise their new AI avatar/assistant, Aida, for in-house training courses and delivering online training to customers.

Sam says the company is planning for more growth in coming years, making the most of its location on the intersection of the M6 and the A66 and the logistical advantage that brings when supplying the rest of the UK.

"What we're finding is that a lot of our competition tends to come from overseas," he says.

"From our perspective, it's a lot more practical to get something into London or Edinburgh from Penrith than it is to get it from Spain, Portugal or China; plus we’ve got the added advantage of being on hand to assist with any additions or alterations once a project gets underway, something our customers always appreciate.

“Cumbrian Stone are in this fortunate position because we've chosen to invest back into our business in order to keep improving what we do, and thanks to this we're able to compete at a level that allows us to maintain a busy order book, whilst keeping our customers and employees happy too.

“Looking at a snapshot of our order book as it stands today, we've got a solid six months in front of us without needing to take anything else on and the enquiries keep flowing in with no signs of slowing down any time soon.

“This has given us the confidence to embark on this next phase of investment and we’re looking forward to seeing where the next few years take us.”