A FIRM that has made decorative pieces from the Houses of Parliament, celebrity homes, and the US Embassy has received funding from a group to advance their digital technology.

Handrail Creations, based off Burnden Road, has invested in a new handheld scanner and software which is set to reduce processing times by 25 per cent.

The new investments are hoped to improve efficiency, productivity, and support growth plans for the company, which includes creating two new jobs.

Kenny Macfarlane, managing director, said: “While the new equipment will speed up the scanning process and reduce survey time, the real benefit will be in the processing speed, converting the data into something that is usable for our design team.

“With more than 70 live projects being managed at any one time and 75 per cent of surveys done using a 3D scanner, we are looking at saving a lot of man hours.

“It will increase our efficiency, but more importantly it will reduce the chance of error, ensuring that our bespoke products are right first time.”

The handrail firm has created one-of-a-kind pieces for famous building across the country, and the latest investments have furthered the company's digital capabilities and given them a competitive edge in the custom support market.

Handrail Creations is one of 61 businesses that has been given money from Made Smarter through their North West Industry 4.0 adoption pilot.

The scheme aims to increase productivity and growth of manufacturing industries to put the UK at the forefront of the fourth industrial revolution.

By upgrading their digital technology, firms can integrate various systems and allow business leaders to spot trends in production and labour.

Firms have more chances to correct maintenance and quality issues, and can minimise safety and business risks, and operational downtime throughout production.

Benefits from these improvements can be seen throughout the supply chain, with other businesses able to see the positives after making transactions with companies that have upgraded their digital production methods.