The creation of Twinfix
Graham Kench, armed with a degree in chemistry, started his career at General Electric (GE) Plastics, travelling the country and Europe, informing clients about the virtues of the polycarbonate sheets they produced. He quickly identified a gap in the market and bought into a company, in 1990, based in Surrey, to meet this need. Initially focusing on a domestic market, but with an eye on the commercial world.
Onwards and upwards
Graham relocated the company to the northwest, to a great location which could service the whole of the UK. The move to Cheshire, gave Graham a chance to grow Twinfix, from the four employees they had at the time. Specialising in high end materials and design, he focused his efforts into manufacturing high quality products for schools, aviation and healthcare sectors. Graham’s passion for rail, led him to develop solutions for this sector too, and by pioneering ‘just in time’ techniques inventing a modular roof panel which could be assembled off-site, he was able to offer something unique to his clients.
The Millennium
The year 2000 saw Twinfix explode onto the market. Known as the ‘Pioneers of Polycarbonate’, Twinfix glazed the Millennium Dome, now known as the 02 Arena. Modifying their Multi-Link Panel, they manufactured a ten-metre-high wall, stretching 1000 metres around the dome. Working on such a prestigious and high-profile project allowed the company to evolve to the next level. This saw Twinfix move to its current home, a bigger premises which offers more space for storage, manufacturing, and development.
Graham had a long-held passion for plastic and believed in quality products, innovation, and developments. He was at heart, a people person. He believed that it was the people that made the business. He was a man who valued his employees, and stayed true to his values, instilling this in the DNA of Twinfix, which still holds true today. Sadly, in 2013, Graham Kench suddenly passed away.
Twinfix today
Graham’s daughters, Sarah Kench and Vicky Evans now run Twinfix as joint Managing Directors, with fellow Directors Dan and Paul. Vicky and Sarah are both keen to continue their dad’s legacy and follow in his footsteps. Sarah who joined the business in 2005 has been instrumental in ensuring quality, managing risk, and developing contracts, which has helped Twinfix achieve their many accreditations, accreditations Graham was aiming to achieve.
Vicky joined the firm in 2010 and has focused on customer service, sales and marketing, roles she naturally fitted into. Complementing the work of her dad, she has helped continue to grow in the rail sector.
The family feel of the business is important to all the Directors, who say that the people who work in the business, grow with the business. Vicky, Sarah, Paul Greenfield and Daniel Smith run the company. Today, they make up a formidable foursome leading Twinfix and their focus is to offer their clients, a full service from initial enquiry, advisory support and design, manufacture and install (for schools).
Proud moment
Reflecting on the business, Vicky said; “I am proud of how the company has evolved. It’s a family business at heart and even though we have grown in the last 30 years, it still has that family feel. It’s in the DNA of what we do and how we operate and that is part of the legacy my dad left. Twinfix is in its 31st year and continues to thrive. I hope that my dad would be extremely proud of where the business is today and where it’s heading. We have grown from four people at the beginning to a current team of 45 people.”
Future fit
These strong foundations built by Graham have given the business a strong platform for the current Twinfix team to drive things forward for the next 30 years and beyond.
