St Leonards firm reopens factory following devastating fire

Drallim Industries, based in Drury Lane, St Leonards, lost its factory in February 2019.

However, the community pulled together, helping the firm get back on its feet, which reopened yesterday (Monday, October 19).

Dave Mooney, managing director, said: “We moved into temporary accommodation after the fire and a lot of local people gave us the space so we could start rebuilding.

“We appointed builders just before last Christmas to reconstruct the factory so it’s taken almost a year to reopen. The builders were Sunninghill Construction from Haywards Heath and all of the subcontractors were from Sussex.

“They maintained progress, despite Covid and we are delighted with the amazing quality of work. We are now ready to push forward build further on our recent success with orders.

“Everyone has worked tremendously hard to get us back. It’s been a very tough period for us. Covid-19 hit us hard as well but we are very resilient.”

He said he would like to thank all the local companies that helped the firm get back on its feet, as well as the company’s recent landlords Offerfare, which provided a lifeline in the form of a temporary factory in Mauncell Road to rent.

The firm manufactures specialist equipment, producing a wide variety of products from underslung cargo hooks for helicopters to complex remote monitoring systems.

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