Kinmel Bay firm to double workforce with £4m expansion

Continental Diamond Tool (CDT), based in Kinmel Bay, plans to create 40 new jobs and triple its production capacity.

The expansion will involve moving to a new 30,000-square-foot factory on the Tir Llwyd Industrial Estate, which is nearly three times the size of its current premises.

The move comes as the company, which was founded as Consort Precision Diamond in 1984, celebrates its 40th anniversary this year.

The firm, which specialises in the manufacture of diamond-encrusted rotary dressers and grinding wheels, is one of only two similar companies in the UK.

Its products are used in Boeing 777 and 787 Dreamliner aircraft, as well as the Airbus range A330-A380.

The company was taken over and rebranded in 2018 by CDT, which has its headquarters in New Haven, Indiana.

The investment was announced by company president Nick Viggiano during a visit to the Kinmel Bay site.

Mr Viggiano said: "Things have worked out even better than I thought and the investment is a real big vote of confidence in the workforce here because they have a similar work ethic and there’s good camaraderie between everyone.

"We expect to be three times the size we are in a few years’ time because there is a very big market for the products we are going to bring over here."

The expansion will allow the company to increase the range of products it makes, adding several new types of high-precision grinding wheels.

American managing director Jeff Wirth said: "This investment has been a long time coming, with six years of preparation and team building leading up to this moment.

"Our Kinmel Bay team, known for their rotary dressers, has already started producing electro-plated products on a small scale.

"Moving to the new building that’s nearly three times the size will give us the space to expedite that process."

The new factory will also include improved facilities for employees, including fresh locker rooms and a cafeteria.

Mr Wirth added that they expect to be up and running in the new building in the first quarter of next year.

From left: Jeff Wirth, Justin Hughes, Nick Viggiano CEO, Michaela Lawton, Troy Giacherio and Shane Vardaman (Image: Mandy Jones)

Finance manager Michaela Lawton said the Kinmel Bay staff were delighted to finally meet Mr Viggiano and CDT’s president of sales, Shane Vardaman, in person.

She said: "We have a solid leadership team here and a fantastic workforce that has the full backing of our American owners and it’s clear that the team here has proved itself worthy of this massive investment."

The expansion is expected to involve recruitment, upskilling and training, and a lot of capital expenditure on fitting out the new factory with the specialist equipment needed.