Successful first year for Teesdale company that's kitted out its factory from eBay

AFTER being involved in his industry for three decades, Stuart Metcalf took the plunge in 2016 and went it alone. 

Last week his company, Ellipse Fabrications, celebrated its first anniversary. The year has seen the business take on ten staff and establish a name for itself through innovative projects across the UK.
The company specialises in building and installing structures with curved roofs. Ellipse Fabrications makes everything from agricultural buildings and garden centre polytunnels to goalposts.
Mr Metcalf, who is Teesdale born and bred and has an agricultural engineering degree, says the past 12 months have “surpassed all expectations”.
His business, which is based in Stainton Grove Industrial Estate, has a unique selling point because its workshop uses machines from British industry of the mid-20th century and onwards.
He bought all the machinery from eBay and some of the items came with a bargain price tag. Some of the tools have been adapted for the 21st century and their new line of work.
Mr Metcalf said: “All the kit and equipment came off eBay. We got a few bargains and a few of the items date from decades ago but they are so well made, solid and uncomplicated – they’re perfect and reliable.”
One such tool is the brake press, which was made by Pearson Machine Tool Co – a Newcastle company that once employed 200 people in the 1960s.
The approach means items are handcrafted in Teesdale and made to fit. This cuts out the middleman of the supply chain where possible, according to Mr Metcalf.
“We believe in doing it ourselves and being in control of the design process. If we can make it ourselves, we will,” said Mr Metcalf, whose workforce will gain another extra staff member this month.
This can-do approach has even seen the fledging company create its own device, which Mr Metcalf jokingly calls a “wiggle wire” machine, to make wires to hold the polytunnel material in place.
The firm’s biggest project to date is a £300,000 structure, which was put up in Worcestershire to cover four acres for a commercial lettuce grower.
The smallest project were goalposts for local teams. This week, the team is heading to Inverness for a job.
“I’m very hands on and although I’m a director, I spent last month on site building. You can’t sell something unless you know how it is built,” he said.
Until a year ago, Mr Metcalf was a technical director for another company, also specialising in polytunnels.
The experience has led to Ellipse Fabrications creating its own trademarked agri-shelter for livestock.
“It’s a half-way house between a polytunnel and portal frame buildings,” he said.
Next on the agenda for Ellipse Fabrications is the creation of a polytunnel shed for gardeners.
Mr Metcalf says anyone else like him with years of experience thinking of setting up a business should “go for it”.
“The biggest thing I find is that people deal with people. I was relatively well known in the industry and people have responded to that,” he said.