Established in 1988, Classique Bedrooms is a family run business that specialises in made to measure fitted furniture. It manufactures all its custom made furniture in a compact, 1900 sq ft facility in Witney, Oxfordshire and prides itself on delivering exceptional quality and service at affordable prices.
Ian Clark, who founded the business nearly 30 years ago, built the company up and gained a reputation for designing, manufacturing and installing quality furniture.
When his son, Nathan Clark, joined the family firm eight years ago he was keen to bring modern technology into the company to improve efficiency and add kitchen and bathroom cabinets to an already-comprehensive bedroom cabinet portfolio.
Edgebander investment starts the ball rolling
“The first machine we invested in was an edgebander,” explains Nathan Clark. He continues: “We carried out extensive research, investigating all the big and some of the smaller players in the market. After an initial meeting with Roger Wilks, Homag UK’s area sales manager, we planned to visit the open house exhibition at Castle Donington.
“Following an impressive demonstration of the machine’s quality of finish and the service care provided by Homag, the decision to invest in Homag equipment became a simple and obvious one.
“The Brandt Ambition 1110F edgebander increased efficiency by eliminating the need to hand finish panels after edgebanding and allowed us to create an additional range of edged doors, including acrylic high gloss. It also provided the opportunity to begin working with trade companies.
“Our next step was to improve cabinet assembly and after consulting with Roger Wilks, we decided to invest in the Weeke BHX 050 drilling and routing CNC. This too proved to be a huge success; cabinet production gained the accuracy of CNC drilling and we were able to add further products to our ever-expanding portfolio. With this machine, we had become so efficient at producing our bedroom furniture that we branched out into the kitchen and bathroom market.
“The increased volume of work triggered discussions as to how we could improve our cutting process and it soon became apparent we needed to invest in a nesting CNC machine to cope with the rise in work volumes.”
Weeke Vantage 100 nesting CNC
“Naturally, our first port of call was to get Roger Wilks’ advice. Understanding our needs to improve cabinet production he recommended we invest in a nesting CNC and in particular, the Weeke Vantage 100.
“When we agreed to buy the Weeke nesting machine we had not even had a demonstration of it, although we were able to see it on Homag’s excellent product videos. That, along with our faith and trust in Roger Wilks made it a very easy decision.”
Finance from Homag Finance fits the bill
“Homag arranged a five year finance package from Homag Finance whose representative, David Henshaw was extremely helpful. This was the third finance package he has arranged for us regarding Homag Group machinery, so he knows our business and our needs really well and it shows.
“The great thing with the Homag Group machinery is the consistency of the user interface across machines. It means that staff can move from machine to machine and operate them in an environment with which they are already familiar.
“All components required for our cabinets had already been programmed using WoodWOP 6 and stored on the BHX 050. The process of transferring the woodWOP files into the Magicut optimisation software was effortless as we already had the knowledge that all our components fitted perfectly together.”
Homag bringing in more new business
“Although we have only had the Weeke for a short while it has already attracted yet more new business. Every time we invest in a new machine from the Homag Group, we proudly display pictures and videos of the machine on our website and share on our social media platforms. This has generated new customers and more work which is exactly what we’d hoped for.
“Our aim is to work smarter, to create high quality products faster and more efficiently which is exactly what the investment in technically advanced machinery has given us. It has enabled us to grow the business whilst maintaining our core values of quality and service. We do not want to be the biggest; we want to be the go to company for innovative, quality, bespoke furniture.
“Investing in the Homag machinery has revolutionised our business. Yes, it is a significant long-term investment, but we see this as future-proofing our business. Investment is the key to any successful business and Homag has given us the inspiration to dream big.”
Homag UK – a friendly and professional team
“From Roger through the entire team at Castle Donington, they are professional but friendly, offering that personal touch. No matter who you talk to, they are informative and trustworthy, and that gives us real peace of mind,” concludes Nathan Clark.
To arrange a machine demonstration, contact Adele Dixon at Homag UK on 01332 856424.
T 01332 856500
www.homag-uk.co.uk
Father and son team, Ian and Nathan Clark with their Weeke Vantage 100 CNC
