Goodridge Ltd last week underlined its commitment to Europe by opening a brand new headquarters, the Dart Building. Located at Exeter Business Park and officially opened to much fanfare on Friday July 8, the new facility will enable the world leader in fluid transfer systems to continue its expansion drive in the run up to its 50th anniversary in 2019.

The grand opening also served as an opportunity for Goodridge to showcase its myriad commitments in a dizzying variety of areas of the automotive industry, including the OEM, motorsport and aftermarket sectors. Individuals from all three were in evidence on the day, with representatives from the likes of Aston Martin, Ariel and the superbike world rubbing shoulders with BTCC Champions Matt Neal and Gordon Shedden, both of whom also brought along their Honda Civic BTCC car. Also present on the day, Litchfield (their 1200bhp Nissan GT-R was another major draw), and Goodridge-affiliated BMW Motorrad stunt driver, Mattie Griffin, with the latter’s stunt show being truly spectacular!

Despite the amazing turnout from all sections of the automotive world, it was the Dart Building itself that managed to steal the show. The result of many months of careful planning and construction, the 6000m2 building groans under the weight of advanced materials and clever, cutting edge design practices. The company representatives, drivers and CEOs were given guided tours of the facility by sales manager Alex Bateman, one of 150 Goodridge personnel that will eventually be based there.

The Dart Building is clear evidence of Goodridge’s ambitious plans for the future, but so too are the various intensive training programmes and nationally recognised certification schemes. The achievements of the firm and the workforce development programme formed a key part of the grand opening last week, and will doubtless play an integral role in its continued success moving forward.

The guided tours offered were far more important than a mere PR exercise, they also gave an incredible insight into the science behind Goodridge’s much vaunted fluid transfer systems. With the doors of the Dart Building flung open the involved process was laid bare, with the various specialised machinery and manufacturing processes there for everyone to see. All involved agreed that these tours weren’t just educational, they were genuinely interesting, something only helped by the generous quantities of food and champagne also on offer!

Aside from the opportunity to rub shoulders with the great and the good of the British Touring Car Championship, the opening of the Dart Building also saw an impressive gathering of some of the fastest and most exotic machines on sale today. The likes of Aston Martin, Ariel, Ferrari, Lamborghini and Porsche were all represented, and the variety of metal on display served to highlight the varied nature of Goodridge’s business and product range.

“We’re thrilled that the grand opening of the Dart Building was an unqualified success, we really couldn’t have hoped for a better turnout from the motorsport, aftermarket and OEM sectors,” enthused Alex Bateman. “Not only does this new facility ensure that Goodridge is able to continue supplying advanced brake, oil and fuel lines to some of car world’s most iconic concerns, it will have real, tangible benefits for the company’s future success and continued growth. Put simply, we’re incredibly excited about the future!”

With the Dart Building now fully open and running, expect Goodridge’s already impressively rapid expansion to gather pace, allowing them to make full use of their new, industry-leading facility.

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