Laboratory Furniture – Tips for Selecting the Best Materials
Laboratories require durable materials s...
Klick History
Klick Technology Milestones
1981 – 1984 Start Up Business & School Trolleys!
23/11/81 – A business was formed by Len Whitehurst as shelf company ‘Sensemere Ltd’.
Jan 1982 – The company name was changed to Store Stock Systems and started trading from a small 20 x 20ft unit on Cecil Road, Hale, Altrincham. The business initially supplied schools with shelving but then designed a computer trolley.
Len is pictured here in a publicity shot to launch the highly successful Klick computer trolley which was revolutionary for transporting all the necessary equipment around schools.
Leaflet dating from Cecil Road 1983.
This new trolley design took off with an order for 350 trolleys from Hampshire LA. At this time Len Whitehurst was the MD and there were 2 other employees, Phil Johnson – Sales, Janet Hull – Admin
Jan 1984 – Due to rapid expansion the company moved to larger 5,000 sq ft. premises in Stag Road Industrial Estate, Altrincham and employed 4 additional packing staff, including John Walker (Now Klick Warehouse Manager)
Klick Superframe trolley leaflet dating from Stag Industrial Estate
Janet in sales shot with trolley options
1984 – ¼ acre of land was acquired on Claverton Road and building work commenced later that year on a 10,000 sq ft. warehouse and offices
Building the warehouse on Claverton Road
Claverton Road site meeting with Len Whitehurst
1985 – 2001 The Early Years At Claverton Road
1985 – Moved into current site on Claverton Road
1986 – Klick started designing fixed benching for computer rooms in schools. The product range quickly expanded to include specialist furniture for science laboratories, food technology, art and D & T rooms
September 1989 – Computer trolley leaflet
Jan 1989 – Achieved FIRA Strength and Stability of Furniture tests for tables and trolleys to BS4875
1989 & 1991 – Warehouse and office extended to 14,360 sq. ft.
19/8/91 – Julie Burns joined Klick as office junior (Now Head of Operations)
September 1991 – Barry Landing joined Klick as a draughtsman for benching products (Now Project Manager)
Photo of Barry & Julie in the office
1992 – First achieved National Quality Assurance Certificate BS5750/ISO9001
Jan 1992 Klick Superstack Brochure
1992 – Early Food Technology & Science Brochure
Nov 1992 – Name changed to Klick Technology Ltd. The “Klick” name was chosen as it represented the metal joint sourced from a Dutch company.
1994 – Purchased first computer aided design system RoboCAD
8/4/96 – Roy Longson joined as CAD assistant (Now Design Manager)
1996 – Landmark project at Holly Lodge Girls’ School, Liverpool
3/3/97 – Jonathan Whitehurst joined as Company Director
1998 – The first Klick website was launched & the first Klick Science Brochure was printed
2002 – 2010 Expansion of Refurbishment Service, More Laboratories, Plus Academies & BSF!
2002 – Completed large laboratory fitout at Greenwich University which kick started Klick’s expansion into supplying commercial laboratories and universities
2002 – Jonathan Whitehurst took over as Managing Director. Len Whitehurst was appointed as Chairman
2003 – First Academy project at Capital City Academy, Willesden, London
2006 – Expanded fitout offer and formed dedicated refurbishment team
2008 – Landmark extension & refurbishment project at Christ The Kings School, Preston
Building work in progress
Finished extension
2010 – Woodchurch High School – First Building Schools for the Future project
2011 – 2021 Further Expansion of Commercial Lab Division with New Website & Branding Update
2011 – Expansion of laboratory division
2014 – Rebranding to form separate brand identity for Laboratories, Education & Healthcare divisions
2016 – Landmark project to fit out Biology department labs at University of York
2018 – Prestigious project to fit out The Barton Science Centre at Tonbridge School, Kent.
2020 – Restructure to concentrate on Commercial Laboratory and Educational Furniture & Fit-Out
October 2021 – Significant project completed for Biofortuna Ltd, converting an empty warehouse shell to diagnostic testing labs, offices & breakout spaces.
November 2021 – Klick Celebrates 40 Years!
40th Birthday Reflections from Klick’s Managing Director
“Klick Technology Ltd has an enviable history which dates back to 1981. The business was founded by my father who showed great tenacity in starting a company and designing a trolley for schools to transport their one and only computer around the building.
For me the highlights of the last 40 years are to have seen the company grow and diversify from supplying school trolleys to operating in the commercial laboratory and fit out sectors. Klick remains a family business to this day and our dedicated staff are critical to the success of the company. We have many longstanding team members who have been with us for over 25 years and their expertise continues to contribute to our strength.
We are proud of our reputation. Our commitment to customer satisfaction is underpinned by a high level of integrity and a genuine desire to deliver outstanding projects – on brief, on time and on budget. My hope is to see the company continue to develop and prosper for many years to come.”
Jonathan Whitehurst M.D.
Jonathan Whitehurst MD, with Clare Whitehurst, Marketing Director & Liam Carney, Contracts Manager
December 2022 – Completed project for Discovery Park which is nationally recognised as a life sciences opportunities zone. Klick were responsible for the furniture fit out of the Incubator Labs in B500 East Block.
April 2023 – Landmark lab construction project completed for AFC Energy providing a one-stop-shop solution to convert an aircraft hangar into 5 state-of-the-art laboratories for research into hydrogen fuel cells.
August 2024 – Klick completed a major project to fit out 12 laboratories in a new 3 floor facility at Alderley Science Park.
September 2024 – Gained SafeContactor approval
The SafeContractor accreditation further demonstrates Klick’s credibility as a trustworthy partner and commitment to health and safety excellence.
This is a positive addition to our existing accreditations for CHAS, Constructionline and ISO9001.
September 2024 – 28 years ago we completed a significant project to refurbish the science department at Holly Lodge Girls’ School, Liverpool. If you check back on our timeline, you will see the entry under 1996.
We were recently invited back to Holly Lodge to refurbish the original labs. The octagon design is now outdated, but the labs were still in remarkably good condition. This is a testament to the quality of Klick’s furniture but also demonstrates the longevity of the business, as some of our current employees worked on the first installation. The staff at Holly Lodge Girls’ College (as it is named now) appreciated the expertise of the Klick team and how smoothly the project was managed.
Klick continues to develop relationships within the educational and commercial sectors, concentrating on delivering exceptional levels of service in the supply and fit out of furniture for laboratories and specialist interiors.
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