A planned industrial zone with units that keep changing hands
Welwyn Garden City set aside an industrial zone at its edge when the town was founded, and the Grade II listed Shredded Wheat factory of 1926 is the best known building in it. The council names Tesco, Roche and, until it closed, Xerox among the large employers, with Tesco the biggest today. Smaller units fill the rest of the zone, and they keep changing hands as firms grow, move and downsize.
New occupiers bring a fit-out list, and we make the steel part of it to your drawing: stairs, platforms, plant enclosures, equipment frames. You receive an itemised written quote within 24 hours in the working week and a lead time confirmed in writing. We invoice against your purchase order, with staged payments on multi-unit orders, and sell to commercial and trade buyers only. Your own installer fits whatever leaves our yard.
Welwyn Garden City firms that buy fabricated steel
- New and refurbished unit tenants Occupiers of schemes such as Nortons Business Park, three Grade A units totalling 43,759 sq ft, order stairs, handrails, plant guards and access platforms, supplied for their own installer.
- Pharmaceutical and food producers The town's pharmaceutical firms and food heritage mean skids, equipment frames, walkways and stainless or aluminium items made by coded TIG welders in a clean, separate area.
- Tesco and logistics contractors Contractors working for the retail head office and distribution users order canopy frames, cabins and enclosures built from modified containers or fabricated steel.
- Estate owners and managing agents Owners of multi-let sites such as The Point on Swallowfields order steel escape stairs, walkways and handrails, finished in RAL paint or galvanised.
Larger steel orders for a Welwyn Garden City unit or plant
The firms in a planned industrial zone like this one order steel for fit-out and for process areas. Examples are stairs and landings to a first floor, access platforms and handrails round plant, skids and frames for pharmaceutical or food equipment in stainless steel, canopies over loading doors, and enclosures for generators or compressors. Where hygiene matters, stainless parts are welded by coded TIG welders in their own area, apart from carbon steel. Carbon steel goes out primed, wet sprayed, powder coated or galvanised.
Containers for Welwyn Garden City contractors and operators
Contractors and operators around Welwyn Garden City use modified containers for site offices, stores, welfare and plant rooms. We frame structural openings into the rails, fit doors, windows and roller shutters, and link or stack units, with repairs, cut-downs and repaints available. The customer supplies the unit or we source one. Recent units cost about £3,400 to £6,800 each net of VAT. See structural modifications.
Enclosures, skids and frames made to your drawing
The larger jobs we take for Welwyn Garden City are enclosures for generator, acoustic, plant and switchgear equipment, skids, machine bases, lifting frames and batch work. Structural pieces come under BS EN 1090 control and can be UKCA or CE marked. Coded MIG, TIG and MMA welders do the work, plasma cutting and bending are done in-house, and galvanising is arranged by us. See steel enclosures.
Nortons, Tewin Road and the Swallowfields units
Nortons Business Park sits on Bridge Road East, Tewin Court Industrial Estate and Chancerygate Business Centre on Tewin Road, and Martinfield Business Centre and The Point lie in the Swallowfields area. Edge Business Park at Brownfields has twelve self-contained units, and Mundells Industrial Estate completes the list. We can deliver from our yard to the door of any of them.
Why a Bedford workshop can cost Welwyn Garden City 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 Welwyn Garden City 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 Welwyn Garden City
Welwyn Garden City is 33 road miles from Marston Moretaine, about 47 minutes by car, with the M1 as the main road, and a loaded lorry takes longer. We organise delivery through our logistics partners and agree the date in writing with the quote so one vehicle covers the whole load. In-house fabrication often makes our price lower than local fabricators.
Our engineers visit the Welwyn Garden City site to see the job and measure up. Multi-let sites such as The Point and Chancerygate have shared forecourts, so agree a delivery slot with the landlord or managing agent and tell us the turning space. Say what forklift or lifting is available and we agree the drop with you. Your own installer fits the steel.
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 you make stainless items for a Welwyn Garden City food or pharma site?
Yes. Coded TIG welding on stainless steel and aluminium happens in a separate area from carbon steel. State the grade and finish in the enquiry and the quote lists them.
What is the lead time for a Welwyn Garden City job?
It depends on scope and finish, and we confirm it in writing with the itemised quote, before you order. The quote returns within 24 hours in the working week.
Do you deliver stairs and walkways to the unit?
Yes. We supply the steel made to drawing and organise delivery to the unit through our logistics partners. Your installer fits it, as we do not install.
Will your engineers come to Welwyn Garden City?
Yes. At 33 road miles and about 47 minutes by car, engineers visit larger jobs to measure up. The quote shows each line, so you can compare it with a nearer firm on price and lead time.
Can I get a drawing checked before I order from Welwyn Garden City?
Send it by email and we review it as part of the quote. Anything unclear on dimensions, material or finish is raised in writing before work starts. Daniel Thomas can be reached on 07365 129991.
Nearby areas
We also quote for firms in St Albans, Stevenage, Luton, Hitchin, Watford, Harlow and Enfield. See every town on the areas we serve page.