Young entrepreneur and business left ‘in deep despair’ after Covid honored at King’s Awards

Two fast-growing Coventry and Warwickshire firms have been recognized at this year’s King’s Awards. RYSE 3D and Arrowsmith Engineering were both honored for their outstanding business achievements.

Mitchell Barnes, founder of Shipston-on-Stour-based RYSE 3D, is one of the youngest CEOs to receive one of the prestigious awards. His 3D printing business started with him replacing his mother’s washing machines in the garage with DIY 3D printers to create models at university.

Seven years on, his firm employs 14 people and has just completed a £1.5m investment. Now providing 3D printed production parts for 18 Hypercar projects worldwide.

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Coventry-based Arrowsmith Engineering also picked up an award in the International Trade category after a boom in export sales. Overseas sales are up almost 400% after being in the “depths of despair” following the pandemic – with those orders now accounting for 35% of the company’s £7.6m annual turnover.

Mitchell, 27, said: “This has been a journey. From replacing my mum’s washing machines in the garage with a couple of DIY 3D printers to create models at university, to setting up a world-class 3D printing factory in Warwickshire and winning one of the toughest business awards in world.

“We pride ourselves on disrupting the market and this has seen us win a number of new contracts around the world, printing production performance components for some of the world’s most renowned OEMs (Original Equipment Manufacturers).

He added: “40% of our work now goes overseas and this figure is set to rise, with interest coming from five different continents. The King’s Award for Enterprise will help strengthen this international expansion and will certainly open new doors for us when we present large OEMs, car manufacturers and potential customers in the aviation, renewables and MedTech sectors.

“It’s also a massive external ‘well done’ to our 14-strong workforce. We had to grow quickly and some of our staff were taken from local cafes and bars and trained as skilled engineers on the job. This award is for them more than anyone else.”

Meanwhile, precision components manufactured at Arrowsmith’s Bayton Road plant in Coventry are sent to global customers in China, France, Germany, Singapore and Spain for end use in aerospace engines, landing gear and airframes. After focusing on recruiting female engineers, women now make up almost a quarter of the workforce.

Managing director Jason Aldridge said: “It has been a turnaround from the depths of despair during Covid to the resurgence we are seeing now and in the future. Civil aviation – a major market for us – literally fell off a cliff with the pandemic and we had to show good old fashioned resilience and a bit of business innovation to get through it.”

He added: “The King’s Award will certainly help us with recruitment, especially considering we are competing with some big car manufacturers and aerospace companies locally. The process is one of the most rigorous in the business and I am delighted with our wonderful staff.

“Yes, we have invested heavily in the best technology, but our people are still our biggest asset and selling point. This award is for them.”

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