The Welsh Development Agency (WDA), the trade arm of the Welsh Assembly Government, made the announcement at a presentation lunch to celebrate the achievements of all last year’s companies, announcing that they had helped welsh companies generate more than £60 million of new business over the last four years.
A very charming Dr Michael Benfield received the top award in South Wales on behalf of his team at Benfield ATT and complimented the Welsh Development Agency’s team on their dedication to promoting quality Welsh companies.
As a result of working with the WDA, Benfield ATT saw sales rocket by over £1.5 million and increased profitability. They also had to recruit 11 new members of staff to cope with the increase in demand.
Working with the WDA not only helped the company focus on improving awareness of it’s services, stimulating leads from a variety of sources including local authorities, architects, builders, self-builders and even home-extenders. According to Dr Benfield however, it also influenced the way of working within the company.
‘There has been a massive change in the culture within the business; from being production-led to becoming customer-focused. We have restructured internally to make us leaner and more efficient. While it is fantastic to be recognised by industry experts and our customers, we think there are few higher accolades than being rewarded by the trade arm of the Welsh Assembly Government”.
At the same time, the company has also been awarded the ISO 9001:2000 quality award and the Q-Mark plus from the UK Timber Frame Association. It has also recently secured Investors in People and unique recognition from the Forest Stewardship Council for sustainable timber buildings. 75% or more Benfield ATT FSC Timber Frame guarantees a building automatically qualifies for an ‘Excellent’ Eco-Homes rating.
