Coffee bars perk up KMF
Increased demand for Costa Express machines has resulted in a 300% increase in production requirements
The takeover of Coffee Nation by Whitbread has boosted production of self-serve coffee bars at KMF (Precision Sheet Metal) by 300% as the units are are rebranded as Costa Express.
Having worked very closely with Coffee Nation in the development of its range of self- service coffee bars, KMF (Precision Sheet Metal) was well placed to meet the increased demands arising from the acquisition. Initially the requirement was to rebrand existing machines and those on order, to meet the Costa Express brand requirements.
Within one month of the announcement KMF had achieved this. However, a staggering increase in demand for Costa Express machines has resulted in a 300% increase in production requirements
“This 300% increase in production was managed seamlessly by our production teams thanks to the combination of the people and systems that we have in place,” says Terry Kimberlin, KMF’s UK sales manager. “We carry no finished stock for customers and everything is produced to an order schedule. The automated manufacturing systems that we use, along with ongoing investment in new capital equipment, gives KMF the flexibility and capacity to respond to increased production demands very quickly.”
The production for Costa Express is made up of three products, these being the Touch, Compact and Express Pod variants of its self-service coffee bars. The Express Pod range of machines, a technology that KMF played a role in developing and integrating, are seeing increased interest from universities, hospitals, rail stations and airports due to their use of chip and pin technology eliminating the need for cash in a fast moving environment.
KMF is scheduled to produce over 3000 Costa Express machines over the next three years with additional demand coming from new markets across Europe.
“The increase in business from Costa Express is making a significant contribution to our sales growth for 2011/2012, which should see KMF’s turnover rise to more than £30 million. This is helped by our ability to add value to our core competency of sheet metal production by integrating electronics and user interfaces to products for our customers, such as Costa Express,” adds Mr Kimberlin.
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