Brand-Rex Ltd was founded in 1972 as a joint venture between Brand-Rex Corporation and British Enkalon to manufacture computer based cabling. Several locations were shortlisted for the company before the ‘new town’ of Glenrothes in Scotland was finally chosen as it already had a large number of high technology companies in the local area and could support industrial growth. Brand-Rex Ltd has remained there ever since and is now one of the town’s largest employers.
The company opened its doors with an initial staff of just 25 – a far cry from the 300 employees that it has in 2012. One member of that original group, George Wright has been employed by Brand-Rex ever since and he and his colleagues were all given £40 worth of vouchers to celebrate this occasion.
The company spent much of the 1970s developing its ethos of manufacturing excellence and, as a result, was soon appointed as a major supplier to IBM in the UK, France and Germany. The 1980s and 1990s brought more success and it launched its first Category 5 cable range in 1992 and then the GigaPlus Category 5e range of solutions in 1997.
After going through various changes of ownership, the new century saw Brand-Rex focus its attention on developing a series of solutions that would cement its position as the premier structured cabling supplier. Installers, consultants and end users looking for ultimate performance and future proofing capabilities welcomed solutions including Cat6Plus in 2002 and 10GPlus in 2006.
In 2008 Brand-Rex was purchased by Murray Capital – bringing the ownership of the company back to Scotland – and has since gone from strength to strength, achieving year-on-year growth thanks to innovative high density solutions including the groundbreaking 10GPlus Zone Cable.
Throughout its history Brand-Rex has always prided itself on its state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities and it recently invested a six-figure sum in its production infrastructure, including the redesign of its engineering and technical office space to double its capacity. The company has also forged an enviable reputation for its environmental credentials and in 2011 announced that its global organisational and operational activities had achieved Carbon Neutral Status in accordance with PAS 2060.
‘The last 40 years have been a remarkable time for Brand-Rex and a look back over the company’s history brings home what a truly unique, innovative and world class organisation it is,’ commented Paul Lines, Brand-Rex CEO. ‘Our determination to exceed our customers’ expectations through a combination of innovation, unrivalled levels of service and manufacturing excellence has served us magnificently over this time and we look forward to continuing to develop the very best products and systems for the next 40 years and beyond.