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After its formation in 1978 by David Milles and Norman Emerson, Eminox grew successfully by supplying high-quality, stainless-steel exhaust systems for trucks and buses, designed to last for the life of the vehicle. The company has grown to become a major supplier to the retrofit market and to major Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) in various sectors including commercial vehicles, ships, trains, cranes and other heavy-duty equipment.
In 1987, the business made its first acquisition, Connectors Ltd, a manufacturer of stainless-steel clamps in Keighley, UK. These clamps were used in vehicle exhaust systems as well as other applications such as turbos and aerospace. This was followed in 1997 by the acquisition of another clamp business (Smith & Johnson Ltd). These two neighbouring businesses were combined to become Teconnex Ltd which has grown to become a leading global supplier of clamps and jointing solutions.
The vertical stack was first developed in 1978 together with British Sugar who benefitted from a smoke free environment around the vehicle. The iconic vertical stack became so popular in 1990 a universal patented aluminium mounting system was developed to reduce weight and part numbers, providing rapid development of new customer systems.
Hexadex Ltd itself was formed as the group holding company in 1991, with a clear role to nurture the growth of its subsidiaries and to acquire new businesses which are either complementary to its existing activities or where it can use its core expertise to add value. Its founding Principles continue to provide the inspiration and framework for our Group Ambition, Values and Strategic Priorities of today.
The CRT® system (Continuously Regenerating Trap) was developed by Eminox with Johnson Matthey to upgrade exhaust systems on older vehicles, improving air quality in city centres around the world.
Eminox developed innovative, proprietary technologies for cleaning and testing diesel particulate filters (DPFs) so that they could be re-used when they became blocked.
As the use of exhaust filters (DPFs) expanded around the world, the group created Ceramex Ltd to capitalise on the technology developed within Eminox. The Ceramex business is now a leading international supplier of DPF Remanufacturing services to major OEMs.
Teconnex developed the flexible spherical slip joint which can operate at elevated exhaust temperatures with minimal leakage and excellent fitting tolerance.
Teconnex created a joint venture with Funwick Manufacturing Co Ltd to manufacture and supply clamps in China to its global customers in the turbo and exhaust industry.
Eminox overcame the challenge of fitting replacement SCRT® exhaust systems into a wide variety of older vehicles by using digital 3D scanning technology.
A joint venture was created in Springfield, Missouri with SRC Holdings Inc to remanufacture DPFs for the North American market.
VeriCat™ was developed as a rapid, cost-effective offline performance test to measure the catalytic efficiency of DPFs after refurbishment, alongside Veritex® inspection and VeriTrap™ particle testing.
Teconnex expanded into Mexico in 2016 to become a more convenient and flexible supplier to major customers in North and South America.
The introduction of collaborative robots or ‘cobots’ to the Teconnex manufacturing operations improved the safety and quality of the spot-welding process used in clamp manufacturing.
The Ceramex technology for remanufacturing DPFs was introduced to major OEMs and other customers in Japan through the creation of the Retrus Ceramex joint venture with USCO.
The group began to expand its activities beyond products that are used in exhaust systems or internal combustion engines. This included the acquisition of Bellows Technology Ltd in 2017 which became a subsidiary of Teconnex Ltd.
During 2017, Hexadex also acquired Hooton Engineering Ltd, a specialist in stainless-steel fabrication supplying a wide range of products into a variety of market sectors including food, architecture, pharmaceuticals and rail.
Teconnex established a new facility near Cluj in Romania to meet the growing requirements of customers in Continental Europe.
Eminox also created a Joint Venture with Funwick Manufacturing Co Ltd to support the adoption of the latest China 6 legislation for emissions standards for cars and commercial vehicles.
In 2018 the group purchased CWM Automation Ltd, a specialist, innovative supplier of automated machinery to the food industry and other sectors.
In advance of the introduction of the latest Bharat 6 emissions standards in India, Teconnex created a facility near Pune to supply clamps to this growing market.
CWM’s revolutionary 240i machine uses Rockwell’s iTRAK® intelligent track system to deliver a huge increase in productivity and filling speeds.
Eminox developed a packaging solution and began producing catalyst containers for the cleantech sector in 2020, in partnership with Johnson Matthey. This innovative solution, developed by our new subsidiary Eminox New Ventures Ltd, enables the manufacture of low-carbon, renewable aviation fuels from municipal waste.
Throughout the history of the group, it has remained in private ownership, under the majority control of the Milles family. This enables the group to take a long-term view without responding to the demands of external shareholders. Our founder, David Milles, remained as Executive Chairman of the group until 2014 when he was succeeded in this role by his son Will and moved to a non-executive position. The group board also includes another family member, Barney Milles, along with 3 executive directors and 2 other independent non-executives with extensive industry experience.
Our Group Ambition, Strategic Priorities and Values derive directly from our Founding Principles – they provide the inspiration for what we do and how we do it, every day.
The Old Court House
24 Market Street
Gainsborough
Lincolnshire DN21 2BE
UK
enquiries@hexadex.com
Tel: +44 (0) 1427 676700
©2023 Hexadex. Hexadex is a registered trademark.