Isle of Wight business AJ Wells & Sons has been making roundels for the London Underground for more than 3 decades, but the design and manufacture work for the Elizabeth line created a new challenge for the company…
AJ Wells & Sons, which has been in operation since 1972, was awarded a number of contracts to provide wayfinding signage, vitreous enamel and stainless-steel cladding, stainless-steel brackets and CCTV housings for many of the 41 stations that make up the new Elizabeth line – also known as Crossrail.
The company is 1 of just a few enamelling plants in the UK and a team of 30 on the Island work across design, artwork, surveying, manufacturing and installation.
The contracts have boosted revenues over the last 5 years and have allowed investment in staff recruitment and training as well as new machinery and equipment, allowing the company to increase their product offering at their facility as the programme required innovative designs that pushed the limits of traditional signage production.
One of the biggest challenges of taking on the Elizabeth line project was the purple tone within the design, which performed differently across the materials the company used.
Cedric Wells, one of the directors at AJ Wells & Sons, explains:
“Although we have produced roundels for the majority of London Underground stations, the Elizabeth line presented a new challenge for us. It was the first time we have used purple across such a wide range of materials and it performs quite differently whether it is enamelled, printed onto glass or illuminated.
Article continues below this advertisement “We still find it exciting to see our roundels in stations so we are looking forward to the opening of the Elizabeth line. We are proud to play our part and bring a bit of Isle of Wight to the capital!”
Andy Byford, Transport for London’s Commissioner, said:
“Companies of all sizes, from all corners of the UK, have helped deliver the Elizabeth line, with 96 per cent of contracts awarded to companies based within the UK and 62 per cent of suppliers based outside of London. During construction the project has supported thousands of jobs across the country and supported thousands of new homes. AJ Wells represents a classic example of the widespread economic benefits that the Elizabeth line has brought to the South East and beyond.
“We are moving ever closer to the launch of the Elizabeth line. I can’t wait to welcome customers from across the UK and beyond to this transformational addition to our transport network”.
The Elizabeth Line is expected to open between now and June as part of a phased opening, with the final timetable coming into force by May 2023. The service in the central section between Paddington and Whitechapel will operate at 24 trains an hour during the peak.
Well done AJ Wells and Son.
So nice to see that we can still manufacture in this country.
Outstanding!
Saw this on the news last night, very impressed, well done AJ Wells and Son nice to know we still have talents that are being used and definitely MADE IN BRITAIN.
vote brexit by any chance?
Yes and a good thing too cause its proving remoaners wrong. We now independent to self determine and it has helped with rapid vaccine rollout and to help Ukraine faster than EU. NO REGRETS FOR MY OUT VOTE. 🙂