A.Gilligan (Coatings) Ltd - Company Profile
The Gilligan’s roots in metal finishing started over one hundred years ago with the need and demand for polishing and brightening of non-ferrous metals, (copper, bronzer, brass, silver and gold).
Latterly chrome plating was invented where the fourth descendent, Mr W E Gilligan (Senior) was amongst the first few to carry out chrome plating in this country. Developments and demands for electroplating has taken many changes during the last forty years where brighter and environmentally friendly processes as well as raw material demands, such as plastics and other materials have lead to world competition in this industry.
The Gilligan family adopts and maintains the policy to keep up with ever changing customer demands and European/International standards for which the competition has to implement similar policies to keep up with us.During the mid eighties the company brought its premises and plant up to the 21st Century standards and was ready to tackle the challenges faced at the time.
A new site was located in 1989 and a purpose designed factory for electroplating criteria was erected.
The company featured on BBC and Central television programmes for its efforts in taking the family business forward and clearing the way for vast improvements on their modernisation program.
At this point the current generation joined the company, (Alan Gilligan). It is quoted that he has one of the most up to date electroplating facilities in the country, including state of the art computer control effluent treatment plant, which constantly monitors all levels and having built-in alarms.
At present the company is accredited to BSI EN:ISO9001: 2008 standards. It is also licensed by the environmental agency for The Integrated Pollution Prevention Control standards. The company also boasts its International Material Data Systems for the End of Life Vehicle Directive. Amongst others such as affiliation to the Surface Engineering Association.
Customers include household names such as Ford, Land Rover, Mitsui, Eaton, Denso, GKN Driveline, Parker Hannifin, Landis & Gyr, Emhart Teknologies (A Black and Decker Group) and Siemans. Components electroplated include Automotive components, engineered fittings, housewares, DIY, electrical and agricultural etc.
2005 brought continued investment with the erection of another plating facility adjacent to the existing building, with state of the art production lines. This factory is currently the only facility in the United Kingdom with Trivalent Chrome VI Free (ELVD) processes throughout whereby the chance of cross contamination cannot occur, as in other facilities nationwide.
The years from 1989 have brought home to many companies the urgency of setting in place the priority of satisfying customer’s needs as the basis of success. One of Birmingham’s oldest electroplaters and paradoxically, also one of its newest since the relocation in 1989, continues a forth generation tradition, but recognises this and is building still.
A Gilligan (Coatings)Ltd at the heart of motor industry manufacturing is swimming against a tide of bureaucracy currently facing this industry, with Chief Executive, Alan Gilligan along with an excellent senior management team are looking set to achieve a premier position in a competitive field.With the 2005 commissioning of three new fully automatic barrel and a large capacity rack plant compliment Gilligan's automated plants to seven, servicing its customers to their needs.
There can be few companies, which have needed to double capacity to keep up with demand during the last few years. Doing so now and with increasing demand on vat plating has to reflect a serious intention. This says Alan Gilligan “is nothing less than the product of our objective of putting its customer’s first.
The company has done this, not only by developing plating finishes, providing satisfaction of new and more stringent corrosion protection requirements, but exploring the changes coming about for more environmentally friendly process, reducing the usage of cyanide also heavy metals (chrome VI) and trade effluent discharges.
Due to customer demand the company has introduced during '2009' new processes such as zinc nickel, zinc alloy plating and zinc phosphating
