West Yorkshire-based bed manufacturer Kelcol Bed Company Ltd recently opened its doors to students on Manufacturing Day to share an insight into its production processes.

Manufacturing Day took place on 6 October 2023 and Kelcol took the opportunity to invite a number of college students to its facility in Mirfield where they got to learn about bed manufacture from concept to the finished product.

Amy Wheeler, Managing Director at Kelcol, said: “We opened our doors of the factory for Manufacturing Day to a group of college students to showcase the manufacturing processes from start to finish, to show the reality and future of modern manufacturing.

“Manufacturing Day empowers manufacturers to come together to address their collective challenges and build excitement about manufacturing careers so they can help their communities and future generations thrive.”

The day was a big success for Kelcol, with the visiting students expressing how much they enjoyed the opportunity. Patrick, aged 16, said: “It was fascinating to learn about the background of how beds and mattresses were made, and it was like a new inside view of the whole process, which I thoroughly enjoyed.”

Flora, 17, added: “The experience itself was unique and not something that you get to see every day. I was very inquisitive to see how the manufacturing process works and it was fun to try equipment and machinery for each process of how a bed is made. It is evident that the staff they have at Kelcol are highly skilled.”

While Aamina, 16, said: “It was really interactive as I got to participate in the making of the beds and was able to learn and ask questions about certain equipment and machines. Overall, I enjoyed my experience at Kelcol and the staff were both knowledgeable and really friendly.”

Jack, 16, commented: “It was an enlightening experience when looking at the manufacturing processes of beds at Kelcol. The highlight of my experience was getting involved with being shown and allowed to ‘have a go’ at using certain machinery that is used in the production process of the beds.”

Kelcol, which also organises work experience opportunities for students to learn about the business and get more hands on, recently announced that it has joined the National Bed Federation (NBF) as a new member after successfully completing an audit process. Read more here.