Econ Engineering Limited is the UK's largest manufacturer of winter and road maintenance vehicle bodies, founded as a supplier of agricultural equipment under the name of Agriquipment Ltd on 9 December 1959 by W. George Lupton in
Otley
Otley is a market town and civil parish at a bridging point on the River Wharfe, in the City of Leeds metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. Historically a part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, the population was 13,668 at the 2011 c ...
,
West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire is a metropolitan and ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and Humber Region of England. It is an inland and upland county having eastward-draining valleys while taking in the moors of the Pennines. West Yorkshire came into exis ...
.
[The Independent 13 November 199]
The Independent - True Grit Article
/ref> As of December 2021, they produce more than 85 per cent of the UK's winter service vehicles, leasing them to councils and highway authorities.
The first Econ prototype salt spreader was finished in 1970 and the machines were launched at the 1972 IWM exhibition in Torquay
Torquay ( ) is a seaside town in Devon, England, part of the unitary authority area of Torbay. It lies south of the county town of Exeter and east-north-east of Plymouth, on the north of Tor Bay, adjoining the neighbouring town of Paignt ...
. The name Econ comes from a Bradford-based company who manufactured industrial heating units called “Econoheat” bought by WG Lupton to balance production whilst developing the salt spreaders.
Econ Engineering manufacture all of their machinery at a custom-built site on the outskirts of Ripon
Ripon () is a cathedral city in the Borough of Harrogate, North Yorkshire, England. The city is located at the confluence of two tributaries of the River Ure, the Laver and Skell. Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, the cit ...
, North Yorkshire
North Yorkshire is the largest ceremonial county (lieutenancy area) in England, covering an area of . Around 40% of the county is covered by national parks, including most of the Yorkshire Dales and the North York Moors. It is one of four cou ...
, constructed in 1980. In January 2022, Econ reported a turnover of over £40m, boosted by continued investment in the business including satellite facilities in Alloa
Alloa (Received Pronunciation ; educated Scottish pronunciation /ˈaloʊa/; gd, Alamhagh, possibly meaning "rock plain") is a town in Clackmannanshire in the Central Lowlands of Scotland. It is on the north bank of the Forth at the spot where ...
, Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to th ...
and Cardiff
Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of Wales. It forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a ...
, Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...
. This was followed by the opening of a new service site in Sowerby, Thirsk
Thirsk is a market town and civil parish in the Hambleton district of North Yorkshire, England known for its racecourse; quirky yarnbomber displays, and depiction as local author James Herriot's fictional Darrowby.
History
Archeological ...
in April 2022. Equipped with 24 service bays, the site cost £7m, with Highways Magazine calling it 'a tour de force of productive investment'. Sustainability was a priority at the site, which has 114 solar panels
A solar cell panel, solar electric panel, photo-voltaic (PV) module, PV panel or solar panel is an assembly of photovoltaic solar cells mounted in a (usually rectangular) frame, and a neatly organised collection of PV panels is called a phot ...
, LED
A light-emitting diode (LED) is a semiconductor device that emits light when current flows through it. Electrons in the semiconductor recombine with electron holes, releasing energy in the form of photons. The color of the light (cor ...
motion-sensored lighting and a water recycling system.
History
*1959: Agriquipment Ltd was founded by WG Lupton on 9 December in Otley, West Yorkshire.
*1961: Patent granted for the world's first flail mower
A flail mower is a type of powered garden/agricultural equipment which is used to deal with heavier grass/scrub which a normal lawn mower could not cope with. Some smaller models are self-powered, but many are PTO driven implements, which can at ...
designed by WG Lupton.
*1965: Agriquipment Ltd was sold to the Oliver Rix Group and production was moved to AC Bamlett in Thirsk
Thirsk is a market town and civil parish in the Hambleton district of North Yorkshire, England known for its racecourse; quirky yarnbomber displays, and depiction as local author James Herriot's fictional Darrowby.
History
Archeological ...
.
*1966: The Lupat Flail Mower goes into production at AC Bamlett and continues until 1969.
*1969: WG Lupton parts ways with the Oliver Rix Group to found Econ Engineering Ltd based at an old vaux brewery site in Ripon. The Lupat Flail Mower was re-purchased from Oliver Rix and production moved to Econ in Ripon.
*1970: The first Econ prototype salt spreader was built.
*1972: The salt spreaders are launched at the IWM exhibition in Torquay
Torquay ( ) is a seaside town in Devon, England, part of the unitary authority area of Torbay. It lies south of the county town of Exeter and east-north-east of Plymouth, on the north of Tor Bay, adjoining the neighbouring town of Paignt ...
.
*1975: Econ introduce road speed related spreading to discharge salt at the same rate irrespective of travelling speed.
*1979: Planning was secured for a new purpose-built factory on the outskirts of Ripon.
*1981: Econ bought Atkin's of Clitheroe
Clitheroe () is a town and civil parish in the Borough of Ribble Valley, Lancashire, England; it is located north-west of Manchester. It is near the Forest of Bowland and is often used as a base for tourists visiting the area. In 2018, the Cl ...
(then the largest UK spreader manufacturer) from the Cammell Laird Group.
*1984–1986: The acquisition and merger of Spencer's of Market Harborough
Market Harborough is a market town in the Harborough District, Harborough district of Leicestershire, England, in the far southeast of the county, forming part of the border with Northamptonshire.
Market Harborough's population was 25,143 in ...
and Acklift of Southwell saw the creation of a street lighting division, the addition of Taskers of Andover
Andover may refer to:
Places Australia
*Andover, Tasmania
Canada
* Andover Parish, New Brunswick
* Perth-Andover, New Brunswick
United Kingdom
* Andover, Hampshire, England
** RAF Andover, a former Royal Air Force station
United States
* And ...
, Taylors of Consett
Consett is a town in County Durham, England, about south-west of Newcastle upon Tyne. It had a population of 27,394 in 2001 and an estimate of 25,812 in 2019.
History
Consett sits high on the edge of the Pennines. Its' name originates in th ...
, Lister Farm Machinery and L&K Sprayers create a burgeoning agricultural division.
*Late 1980s: The agricultural and powered access divisions are dismantled and sold off following the 1980s boom and bust.
*1991: The Hot Box highway maintenance equipment is released.
*1993: Econ QCB system is developed and launched.
*1994: Unibody multipurpose body and salt spreader is released. Econ leaves the agricultural market completely and continues in the highway and winter maintenance sector.
*1995: Pre Wet spreader is released.
*1996: The Low Throw spreader is released for urban spreading.
*2003: The Econ factory site was expanded to include a large refurbishment centre at the north of the site.
*2004: Econ installs the most advanced paint facility in England to increase anti-corrosion performance. SPARGO control system goes into production allowing remote salt-spreading adjustment on the move.
*2005: The acquisition of MHS's hire fleet doubles the size of the Econ fleet to 160 units.
*2008: SPARGO IS goes into development, an electronics GPS control unit that allows sat nav style route directions and preplanned automatically varying salt spreading patterns.
File:Lupat Hedge Trimmer.jpg, The first hedge trimmer built by George Lupton, founder of Lupat (later Econ Engineering)
File:Hedge Trimmers.jpg, Econ Hedgemaster model HM3E (built 1996) and original Lupat Vergemaster (built 1960)
File:Econ at 1972 IWM Exibition.jpg, Econ prototype spreaders at the 1972 IWM exhibition in Torquay
File:Econ Factory Aerial 2007.jpg, Econ Factory, Ripon N'Yorkshire (2007)
File:Econ Salt Spreader.jpg, Econ Salt Spreader in use (winter 2009–2010)
References
External links
{{Commons category-inline, Econ Engineering Ltd
Econ Engineering Ltd company website
Whale/Econ Partnership
Agricultural machinery manufacturers of the United Kingdom
Companies based in North Yorkshire
Ripon
British companies established in 1959
Vehicle manufacturing companies established in 1959