Chesterfield Ductile Group Limited is a new company with very serious ambitions to challenge Saint Gobain in the supply of ductile iron pipes, fittings, and fabrications.

Chesterfield Ductile Group brings together the UK water industry knowledge of Chesterfield based Fusion Group, the manufacturing expertise of Electrosteel Castings Limited and the fabrication skills of Prime Equipment Limited. The brainchild of Fusion Group Chairman, Eric Bridgstock, Chesterfield Ductile Group certainly has the right credentials to become a major force in the British and Irish markets having already won the Yorkshire Water contracts for the exclusive supply of ductile iron potable water and sewage pipes. Over £1.5m has been spent on stock to ensure that the company can achieve its goal of providing a responsive, flexible and friendly service.

Since the acquisition and subsequent absorption by Saint Gobain of Biwater Industries (Clay Cross) Limited in 2000, buyers of ductile iron pipe and fittings have had only a limited number of supply options. Chesterfield Ductile Group’s Sales and Business Development Director, Andrew Radford, believes that competition in the sector is long overdue: “ From speaking to clients I’m aware that they value our ability to react quickly to requests for flanged pipework and bespoke ductile iron and steel fabrications and that is a major competitive advantage. On potable water and wastewater pipework our Chesterfield distribution centre is supported by stockholdings in Livingston, Dublin and Belfast. Combine this with a strong technical support team and we are ideally suited to satisfy clients throughout the British Isles.”

Many of Chesterfield Ductile Group’s senior management team – Managing Director, Neil Green; Sales and Business Development Director Andrew Radford and Technical Director, Tony Dexter - worked at Biwater in the past and their extensive commercial and technical ductile iron knowledge provides the backbone of the new company. Neil Green commented that locating the company in Chesterfield was an easy decision: “North East Derbyshire is widely acknowledged as one of the major centres of ductile iron expertise in Britain and provides a local pool of extremely knowledgeable, hardworking commercial and fabrication personnel. Chesterfield is also an ideal logistics hub located close to the UK’s motorway network.”

The new company’s Chesterfield roots are reflected in its striking new logo which incorporates the town’s famous crooked spire.