Haines Watts working with Lawton Tubes

It has also worked with the management team to access a host of pandemic support, which has been invaluable as the Coventry-based engineering specialist has been busy supplying more than 120 miles of medical gas copper pipes over the previous months.

This involved switching the majority of its production to cater for unprecedented demand from the NHS and healthcare providers for its copper tubes that are the preferred natural, 100% recyclable, safe means of carrying medical gasses from the plant room to the patient’s bed.

In the UK alone, the firm supplied enough product – laid end to end – to equal that of phase 1 of HS2, whilst also supporting the response of 30 countries across the world.

It has been a whirlwind period for the fourth generation-owned business, which has seen export levels grow from zero to over £13.5m in just over a decade, with Haines Watts helping to manage growth, a family shareholding agreement and provide day-to-day support throughout the pandemic.

“We have worked hard to understand what makes Lawton Tubes different, putting in place a specialist advice package that has underpinned its growth,” explained Terri Halstead, Tax Partner at Haines Watts.

“Over the years we have added more and more services, making the management team aware of new financial support opportunities and advising on key issues, the most recent one being access to Government assistance during Covid-19.

Rob added: “We like to work with businesses that share similar philosophies to ourselves and Haines Watts gets ‘what makes us different’ and how important the day-to-day advice and guidance can be in helping us grow.

“Terri and her team are on hand to act as a sounding board and this has been invaluable over the 15 years and will continue to be as we get through the pandemic and, hopefully, make the most of new opportunities when the recovery arrives.”

Lawton Tubes, which has a second site in Poole, has created a niche for itself in supplying high quality copper tube to clients involved in air conditioning, engineering, plumbing and the medical sector.

Regular investment in new warehousing, equipment and company-wide training has seen it achieve year-on-year growth for the last decade, with turnover touching £155m and a workforce of just over 100.