From Bailey bridges to Southam Road units
A history of Banbury's manufacturing records Bailey Bridges as the town's largest employer at one time, with a workforce of 2,300. The industry today is more mixed. Safran Electronics & Defense has a composites manufacturing engineering team in the town, DCS Manufacturing has expanded its Banbury head office and counts household-goods giants among its suppliers, and the old coffee plant on Ruscote Avenue has closed and is flagged for redevelopment in the draft Cherwell Local Plan 2042.
Firms that make products for a living still buy in steelwork around them: frames, platforms, enclosures and stairs. We make those to drawing at a 12,000 sq ft workshop with coded MIG, TIG and MMA welders. Quotes arrive itemised within 24 hours in the working week, lead times are confirmed in writing, and invoices run against your purchase order. We deal with commercial and trade buyers only.
Who in Banbury needs a fabricator
- Defence and composites engineering A composites and defence site uses jigs, tooling frames, mould supports and test stands. Suppliers to that field order them in small batches, some in aluminium or stainless TIG.
- Contract manufacturers and packers A firm like DCS Manufacturing works at volume for brand owners. Plants of that kind order handling frames, line guards, platforms and mezzanine stairs.
- Redevelopment and fit-out contractors Sites such as the closed coffee plant on Ruscote Avenue need steel canopies, escape stairs, walkways and bollards for new occupiers, supplied galvanised or in RAL paint.
- Estate landlords and trade tenants Owners on Tramway, Penhill and Southam Road order plant screens, roof access ladders, dock guarding and security shutters supplied to fit by their own contractors.
Larger orders from the Banbury area
Bigger Banbury jobs usually mean batches and packages: 15 to 50 matching frames, jigs or trolleys, enclosures for generators and plant, lifting frames, machine bases, and a staircase and walkway package for a unit refurbishment. Structural items are made under BS EN 1090 control and can be supplied UKCA or CE marked. Finishes cover powder coat, RAL wet spray and hot-dip galvanising, which we arrange, and stainless or aluminium parts are TIG welded in their own area.
Containers for Banbury yards
Banbury's trade estates have yard room for containers as stores, tool cribs, plant rooms or temporary offices. We frame structural openings into the rails, fit doors, windows and roller shutters, link or stack units, cut them down to a shorter length, and repair and repaint. Customers supply the box or we source it. Recent units have cost about £3,400 to £6,800 each net of VAT depending on scope. See container modifications.
Frames, stairs and enclosures for Banbury plant
For Banbury buyers the larger fabrication is steel enclosures for plant, batteries and switchgear, skids and frames for equipment, and supply-only stairs, fire escapes, walkways and handrails. Coded MIG, TIG and MMA welders do the work, we cut with plasma and bend in-house, and laser-cut parts come through suppliers. Structural pieces run under BS EN 1090 control. Each quote lists material, fabrication and finish as separate lines. See steel walkways and railings.
Banbury's industrial addresses
Tramway Industrial Estate is an established industrial and warehouse location at Riverside, close to the town centre. Penhill Industrial Park, Sugarswell Business Park, Beaumont Business Centre and Edward Street Business Centre are others, and Apollo Business Park at Wroxton offers light industrial units off Ironstone Lane. Ruscote Avenue and Southam Road both carry factory and trade premises, and the draft Local Plan names Higham Way and Canalside among its employment sites.
Why a Bedford workshop can cost Banbury less
Cutting, welding, finishing and checking all happen in our own 12,000 sq ft workshop, so no stage is passed to a subcontractor with its own margin. Delivery to Banbury goes through our logistics partners and shows as its own line on the quote. Put the two together and the total often comes in below a local fabricator, which is easy to check: send us the same drawing you've sent them.
Delivery and site visits in Banbury
Banbury is 42 road miles from Marston Moretaine, about 58 minutes by car, using the A421 and the A422. Drive times are by car, and a loaded lorry takes longer. We organise delivery through our logistics partners and agree the day with you before loading. Because the work is made in-house, our price often lands below local fabricators.
Our engineers visit the Banbury site to see the job. Older estates such as Tramway can have tight junctions and shared yards, so tell us the gate width, turning room and any weight limit. Say what lifting there is on site and we agree the drop with you. Your own installer positions and fixes the steelwork. We supply fabricated steel and do not install on site.
How a job runs
- 01.Send the drawing
PDF or CAD, a dimensioned sketch, or a photo of the old part. Quantities and the site postcode help.
- 02.Itemised quote in 24 hours
Material, fabrication, finish and haulage broken out line by line, with the lead time confirmed in writing.
- 03.Agree spec and finish
Sections, tolerances, weld spec and finish confirmed before anything is cut.
- 04.Fabricated inside our unit
Cut, welded and assembled by coded welders in our 12,000 sq ft Marston Moretaine workshop.
- 05.Check and paperwork
Dimensionally checked before dispatch; welder qualification and mill certificates on request.
- 06.Delivered to site
We organise delivery to your site through our logistics partners, or you can collect from the yard if that suits. One-offs and batches both welcome.
Work we take on
- Container modifications: conversions and modifications to drawing, single units or batches
- Structural openings: side openings, doors, roller shutters, linking and cut-downs
- Container repairs: panel, door and rail repairs and repaints for depots and fleets
- Steel enclosures: generator, acoustic, plant and battery housings
- Skids and frames: skids, machine bases, lifting frames and supports
- Commercial fabrication: fabrication to drawing, structural steelwork, one-offs and batches
- Stairs and fire escapes: supplied ready for your installer to fit
- Walkways and railings: handrails, platforms and ladders, supplied to fit
Frequently asked questions
Can Banbury firms order a staircase and walkway as one package?
Yes. We supply stairs, landings, walkways and handrails as one quote, made to your drawing and supplied to fit. Your own installer fixes them on site, since we do not install.
Is hot-dip galvanising available for Banbury work?
Yes, we arrange it as one of the finishes alongside raw, primed, RAL wet spray and powder coat. The quote shows the finish cost separately, and any extra time is written into the lead time.
How do I get a Banbury quote when the drawing is still rough?
Send what you have, with the sizes, loads and finish you want. We query gaps in writing, then return an itemised quote within 24 hours of a complete drawing in the working week.
Do you deliver to Banbury?
Yes. We organise delivery via the A421 and A422, the route we quote for road miles and drive time. It is chosen to suit the load, and a loaded lorry takes longer than the car time shown. Engineers can visit first.
Nearby areas
We also quote for firms in Bicester, Daventry, Rugby, Oxford and Swindon. See every town on the areas we serve page.