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COMPANY FOCUS: PALACE CHEMICALS CROWNING GLORY This year marks Palace Chemical’s 45th F


ounded 45 years ago, the Palace Chemicals story all began when four close friends set out to create a business which they would be proud to call their own. In 1978, Charlie Clapham, Stanley Clough, George Dennison and John Courtney; came together to combine their extensive knowledge and skills to create the company, which they set up in Liverpool. Nowadays, Charlie Clapham is owner of the business, and he says: “However, not all landmark memories are happy memories. In May 2000, a devastating fire ripped through our factory in Speke. This was a horrendously difficult time but it was also a pivotal point in our history.


“The resilience of our staff was heart- warming, the support from the wider industry was amazing and both of these factors gave us the resilience and drive to rise from the ashes. While it was a humbling time for us, it was also an empowering period and just like the phoenix, we rose up and came back stronger than ever.


Clapham explains that the market has changed a lot over the decades and it has strived to adapt alongside it. The company always welcomes


advancements in standards and technical specifications because it aligns in its priority for safety and sustainability.


He adds: “We have led from the front, embracing change and innovation. “Brexit brought with it some headaches when it came to harmonising standards, then, of course, there was the pandemic, followed by world events all of which have all had an impact on supply chains and affected consumer confidence.


“After the pandemic, costs of raw materials increased considerably. Shortages of raw materials were an issue, again due to the war in Ukraine, but this has calmed down now. However, while the supply chain has improved, it is still challenging.


26 anniversary. Will McGill learns about the trials and triumphs the company has met along the way.


“As a company, we are all about the sustainability of products, and so we will continue to innovate. As an industry, our primary hope is for the sector’s continued path towards sustainability. We hope for greater innovation and investment in this regard from across the industry. “Recent instability in the supply chain has been challenging, however, the tiling market is in a healthy position, as we enter 2024.” The company considers itself to be a standard- bearer for British manufacturing since its foundation in 1978, this doesn’t mean that it hasn’t stopped innovating. Clapham says: “We are a trusted leader in sustainable manufacturing and always


have sustainability in mind when developing our new products. Technology and investment has meant we now have zero waste to landfill from our operating processes. Production is integrated with a closed-loop dust extraction and recycling system, which ensures all airborne dust emissions are contained and collected within a network of extraction ducting around all powder manufacturing and packing processes on site.


“We are an ever-expanding company. Over the past 45 years we have grown organically as well as through acquisition - including acquiring brands such as Langlow, Houseplan and, most recently, Rock-Tite, Pro Gyp-Base and NX – however, we remain a family business. We consider our teams and


customers to be like family, and we intend to continue the growth of our business while maintaining these principles.


“Our pursuit of ever more sustainable production methods is something that goes hand in hand with continuing research into improving our production processes and products. It is our mission to eventually remove plastics and non-recyclable packaging from our systems.


Standards first


“Palace Chemicals was the first company in the sector to be awarded BS5750 (later upgraded to ISO9001). In 2004, we became an ISO 14001 manufacturer for our Environmental Management System and we were accredited by the BSI for our BS OHSAS 18001 Health and Safety Management System in 2014, which was then updated to ISO 45001 in 2018.


“We are always looking to the future and, as a family focused firm, we always have an eye on sustainability and protecting the future for the next generation and beyond. “All of our plastic-based packaging now contains a minimum of 30% recycled plastics, and we’ve got products with more than 40% recycled materials. Sustainable production is one of our most important achievements and a legacy that we intend to continue to improve upon.”


Clapham explains: “We may now be a leader in our field in the UK, but we refuse to rest on our laurels. Like most companies, we have a five-year plan. In five years’ time it will be our Golden Jubilee – 50 years in business – so we’re planning to be turning over 50 million pounds by that time, which has a nice ring to it.” BMJ


www.buildersmerchantsjournal.net February 2024


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