MP sees local company adapting to current climate

11.00.00am BST (GMT +0100) Tue 14th Apr 2009

Listening to local business's concerns is crucial for Alan Beith MP, who works hard to represent our area at Westminster.

One of the UK's longest established timber companies showed MP Sir Alan Beith how it is dealing with the recession.

Sir Alan Beith visited Allan Brothers in his constituency of Berwick upon Tweed to see how one of the area's biggest employers is coping with the current economic climate.

Allan Brothers employs over 200 people in the local area and has been through many ups and downs of the UK economy during its 198 year history. The company has continued to thrive by constantly adapting and improving the business.

Sir Alan Beith said,

"Allan Brothers is a long-established company in Berwick and a significant local employer. It was very useful to me to come and meet the management and workers and hear of the company's plans to work through the current economic situation, and I wish them well."

Duncan Forster, Managing Director at Allan Brothers, said, "The construction industry was one of the first to be hit by the economic down turn and it will be a slow and gradual recovery. But we believe we will be able to come out of it as a stronger and more efficient company. We are recruiting new sales staff, implementing new IT and support systems to help us increase our share of the work that is out there, and introducing new products. While the market for new build houses has gone flat, we are focusing our efforts into other markets and strengthening our position overall.

Allan Brothers produces a wide range of high performance, environmentally friendly, timber windows and doors.