A Royal Visit

HRH The Princess Royal opens new £80M extension at British Ceramic Tile Ltd. It was a privilege to be represent the District Council on such a prestigious occasion and even more of an honour for myself and my husband to be presented. What a success story this is and one with an important message for our times. The Chairman of BCT Konrad Goess-Saurau and his fellow investors had vision and saw the potential in combining access to an unlimited supply of ballclay on the doorstep with the manufacture of top quality ceramic tiles. First he had to modernise an old fashioned plant and set about creating a fully automated operation. This enabled him to challenge his competitors in Europe by cutting out the need to import raw materials and specialist tiles. Now there is a complete turnaround and BCT supply major developers and household name retailers, plus the lucrative DIY markets as well as reducing his company's carbon footprint considerably.