Sherborne Upholstery has chosen Lectra, a world leader in integrated technology solutions dedicated to industries using fabrics, leather, technical textiles and composite materials, to provide its solutions for both its leather and fabric cutting rooms.
A Lectra customer for more than 20 years, Sherborne Upholstery is one of the UK’s oldest family-owned upholstered furniture manufacturers.
Sherborne has been producing upholstered furniture for over 85 years and for decades it has been the market leader in reclining furniture, both manual and electric, together with sofas and chairs in both leather and fabric. The company currently operates two factories and distributes its products through a range of retailers in the UK and in the Republic of Ireland. Proud of its made in Britain image, it produces every piece entirely in England.
The quality of its products and the level of service it is known for have enabled Sherborne Upholstery to differentiate from lower-cost importers. However, the company still faces stiff domestic competition, and recently sought to automate and fully optimise its production. Lectra experts worked closely with Sherborne Upholstery to propose a comprehensive leather and fabric cutting room solution which would meet their needs, both now and in the future.
The deciding factor for Sherborne Upholstery was the exceptional cutting quality, hide efficiency and material savings delivered by Versalis, Lectra’s innovative leather cutting solution. Its advanced flaw identification, powerful leather nesting algorithms and unrivaled productivity outshone the competition. With Versalis, Sherborne Upholstery will be able to increase hide efficiency by up to 9.5%, reduce re-cuts by two-thirds and boost sewing efficiency by 10% thanks to the improved quality and consistency of cut parts.
“We were impressed, not only by Lectra’s advanced technology and services, but by its expertise in automating the cutting room. This will transform the way we work, and will deliver significant savings and improved efficiency to enable our business to continue to grow in this competitive market,” said Chris Walker, MD, Sherborne Upholstery.
In addition, Sherborne Upholstery decided to upgrade its aging fabric cutting room, with the implementation of two state-of-the-art Vector automated cutting solutions, which will increase production capacity and maximize operational uptime thanks to Lectra’s predictive and preventative maintenance service. This leaves the company ideally positioned to meet its strategic growth objectives.
“We have seen a rebound of the furniture market in the UK this past year and we are proud that Sherborne has chosen Lectra to support its ambition and its strategy to implement and optimize its cutting rooms,” says Céline Choussy Bedouet, chief marketing officer, Lectra.
