APD is celebrating 35 successful years in business.
From humble beginnings in a garage in Eastriggs, a small village in south west Scotland, the company has come a long way since 1987.
These three and a half decades have seen an office relocation, an expansion into Aberdeen, multiple logo redesigns, a collection of prestigious industry awards and many successful partnerships.
Specialising in industrial solutions, APD are proud to be responsible for over 8000 control systems across 22 countries worldwide. From water treatment plants in Scotland & northern England; nuclear and hydro power sites in Scotland; factories across many sectors including automotive, food, distilling, laundry, pharmaceuticals; to oil platforms, ships and submarines globally. APD has had the privilege of working alongside many of the world’s best known companies such as McVities, Nissan, Pirelli, Nestle, Aker, British Gypsum, Cochran, William Grants, Helix, Magnox, Grundfos, Scottish Water and many others, on some truly fascinating and ground breaking projects.
Jim Main, Technical Director at the company said; “when the company started out, the equipment used in control systems dated back to the industrial revolution. Computerised systems were in their infancy. The developments over the last 35 years have given a seismic shift in the options and capabilities available for us to design, build, program and install systems”.
None of this would have been possible of course, without the talented and hard-working employees of APD, some of which have been with the company for over 30 years. APD directors, Elliot Graham and Jim Main showed their appreciation by marking the special milestone with a day out for everyone at Carlisle races. The company sponsored the most prestigious race of the day with everyone enjoying first class food, drinks and not forgetting the racing! Miss Amelia, a 9 year old Bay Mare ridden by Tom Midgley and trained by Mark Walford was presented with the winner’s prize for the ‘APD 35th Anniversary Handicap Chase’ ran over 2 miles on the beautiful Carlisle course.
APD are now looking forward to what the future holds. This year will see the launch of APD Energy; an exciting new subdivision focussed on providing cutting-edge solutions to commercial and industrial energy problems.
Using innovative technology for smart energy generation, storage & distribution the aim is to provide businesses of all sizes, with realistic (future ready/proof) options for reducing energy costs and lowering their carbon footprint.
This may be a relatively new chapter in APD’s story but customers can still rely on the core principles the company has long since built a reputation for; innovation, quality and value.
Talking about these values, Jim says “One of the primary reasons the company has thrived is our approach to innovation. We have never shied away from pushing the boat out with new ideas, technologies and how we approach a project. There’s no sense of this slowing, in fact the technology performance is accelerating and it’s difficult for me to predict what will be possible by the time the company reaches its 50th year.”
Thanks to all for the last 35 years, and here’s to the next.