Huddersfield Examiner: Orders filling up for Karmelle

A HUDDERSFIELD firm making machinery to fill and seal containers has completed a six-figure contract with a key customer in Africa. Karmelle Ltd, based at Leeds Road, is exporting an automated processing line to Sidalco, based in Tema, Ghana. The production line will be used to fill, seal and label plastic containers containing Sidalco’s branded agrochemical Defender. Karmelle took 12 weeks to complete the filling line. Two engineers from the company will go out to Ghana to commission the plant and train local workers to operate it. Once fully operational, the equipment will allow Sidalco to turn out up to 20,000 litres a day of the fungicide, which is used to protect a range of agricultural and horticultural crops in copper-deficient soil. Karmelle directors Brian Dickinson and Peter Krawczuk said the £150,000 contract was the second in less than a year for Sidalco. The African company is also a major fruit producer – and Karmelle is hoping to land further contracts to design and build similar processing equipment to crush and bottle pineapple juice for Sidalco. Mr Dickinson said: “We have built up good relationships with the company. Sidalco would like to act as our agents for the whole of the African west coast.” Karmelle has built up an enviable list of clients in the past 28 years, including Birstall-based paints maker Kalon, Baxter’s Foods, Ronseal and McDonalds. Karmelle designs and manufactures automated equipment to fill containers with all manner of liquids – ranging from paints, chemicals and motor oil to vegetable oil and molasses. Contracts have included providing equipment to fill containers with agrochemicals at a factory in Flint, North Wales; a white spirit bottling plant for B&Q and another to pack 20-litre containers of vegetable oil for McDonalds to cook its chips in. The Huddersfield firm has produced a system to bottle pickled onions and gherkins while another was supplied to Castrol to put motor oil into five-litre cans. Karmelle, which is a member of the Process and Packing Machinery Association, has completed contracts for customers across the UK – from Devon to Carlisle – and exported its expertise to clients in Ireland, Holland, Saudi Arabia, Russia, Germany, Croatia and Colombia. Mr Dickinson said Karmelle was also likely to expand its seven-strong workforce. “Our order book is pretty full and we will be needing a few extra pairs of hands,” he said.