Delivering the light Fantastic.

Switched-on expert advice and guidance from MCCR & Associates MAS Specialists, Abigail Levin & David Brannock enabled Sowerby Bridge based Company Zodion, a leading lighting company, to look to the future with confidence.

Zodions' roots lie firmly in Sowerby Bridge, and before its recent re-structuring, the business was known as Cableform, a well-known and respected local company.

The firms previous premises were located in old mills, which had been converted into manufacturing units. However, the accommodation was far from ideal for a 21st century business.

In 2003, the decision was taken to re-brand Cableform as Zodion, a company specialising in lighting engineering. The two dedicated divisions of the new company comprise Zodion Street Lighting Controls and Lumo Lighting, which provides low voltage lighting for caravans, motor homes and commercial vehicles.

New premises for Zodion were sourced but, as Managing Director John Fox explained, a lot of work was still required. "The premises were just a shell and we took the decision to bring in the MAS Specialists to help us facilitate the move. Abigail and David were brilliant and got involved in many different aspects of the relocation, including advising us on the best office and factory layout.

"Our timetable was very agressive, and they helped us fit out the new building and move within three months, achieving our deadline date of April 2004. The MCCR MAS Specialists also provided us with some excellent ideas that certainly made the move relatively painless and seamless.

Throughout all the recent changes, our 62 employees have been extremely supportive. They now have a modern pleasant working environment, which has undoubtedly played a role in our turnover this year, which is on target to reach almost £5m."

The firm manufactures an extensive range of high quality electronic photo control units and lamp ballasts for street and amenity lighting, and also has the capacity to provide lighting controls for highway signage applications.

John Fox said: "We pride ourselves on being an innovative company and are constantly investing in research to ensure our products are at the cutting edge of technology. For example, we are currently running trials on a new photocell, SmartCELL, for switching street lighting on and off. It has the capability to maintain an optimum power factor and provides greater efficiency and, as a result, greater cost savings.

"Innovation is also an important factor in our Lumo Lighting division. Today's purchasers of caravans and mobile homes are more discerning than ever and we therefore place more emphasis on providing fashionable, high performance, lighting designs. This, along with our reputation for quality, places us as a leading supplier of interior low voltage lights.

"We have kept in close contact with MAS through MCCR MAS Specialist, Abigail Levin. They have an in-depth understanding of our business and we know we can trust them to provide us with a very simple and effective set of tools to move the company forward.

"Their practical help and advice has helped us to reduce the levels of faults or defects and improve the usage of our operational equipment. They have also assisted us to improve our stock turns with the introduction of an effective stock management process.

This is an important factor in our aim to provide our customers with a high level of service, and to achieve this it is vital to have the right parts available in the right quantities, and at the right time".