Staff at Peter Ward and Co. (not named)

A £1.5 m investment in new machines has left one Burnley company with a problem - it can’t get enough staff to run them. While much of the U.K. industry has been hit hard by recession, Peter Ward and Co. has invested a large amount of cash, and there is more to come. The company wants to expand its current workforce of 70 but nobody seems to be interested in applying for work. The firm operates 24/7 and has so much work that new extrusion machines are being installed at £250,000 each, to increase output. Peter Ward has been long established in Burnley, originally manufacturing plastic household products but now a vast range of moulded plastic products comes out of the factory on Rossendale Road industrial estate. Admin. and quality manager Howard Ibbitson said “We have lost our buckets and bowls image, and moved into the trade moulding market.” The products range from stacking tote boxes to lobster pots, vacuum cleaner bodies and garden planters. The company had five machines in 1986 now they have 15 and are updating their technology and have just gained BS5750 quality standard.