The name Langley Alloys has long been synonymous with high quality and reliable distribution of stainless steels, duplexes, and special alloys. The company has undergone significant expansion in recent years, from the organic growth in its distribution business, its 2023 acquisition of Copeland & Craddock, increased focus on value-adding processes, and the ramping-up of its activities in the USA. We spoke to four key team members*, Neil Carne, Richard Bulmer, Richard Coates and Rodney Rice, about the company’s ongoing evolution.
By Joanne McIntyre, Stainless Steel World
With a history dating back over 85 years, Langley Alloys has a strong reputation in the market as a leader of high-performance alloys and expert stockist with a particular focus on duplex, super duplex and nickel alloys. It continues to expand its expertise and global reach today. The recent acquisition of Copeland & Craddock was an important step.
Acquisition of Copeland & Craddock
Centreless Turning/Peeling: 12 – 215mm diameter with h9/h10 tolerance, in lengths up to 12000mm.
Reeling: Bright reeling from 12-76mm diameter, 1:2000 straightness.
Black reeling 20-65mm diameter, 1:1000 straightness.
Eighteen months ago, Langley Alloys acquired Copeland & Craddock, a company founded in the 1960s that focuses on bar peeling – also known as centreless bar turning – and further processing. Neil Carne explains:
“Copeland & Craddock specialises in precision centreless bar turning, a process that removes scale, surface defects and surface decarburisation, aiding subsequent operations without significantly changing the mechanical properties. For engineers, the process provides the opportunity to commence production from bar stock at the optimum diameter, saving unnecessary machining costs and time. For the stockholder, centreless bar turning converts one stock size to a variety of other sizes including hexagonal and octagonal sections to rounds. The process also offers both the engineer and the stockholder the possibility of recovering surface damaged material, as well as surplus or obsolete stock.”
“Copeland & Craddock was a key supplier to Langley Alloys for many years, and we are now widening its portfolio and presence in the market by both investing into facilities for further processing and stocking our own products too,” explains Neil. Substantial investments have been made in new equipment, including bar grinding and straightening machines, as well as extensive in-house testing facilities.
“Copeland & Craddock has been upgraded to a one-stop shop for metal processing,” continues Neil. “Once a bar has been peeled, it progresses through straightening, grinding, and other processes followed by further inspection. Having all those activities under one roof streamlines the supply chain, dramatically reducing lead times and transport costs. Our investment program is ongoing, with both buildings and equipment being thoroughly revamped.”
“These upgrades are revolutionising the way Copeland & Craddock operates and our customer base continues to expand as customers benefit from the full range of value-added processing.”
Expert machining capabilities
Langley Alloys’ machining operations were initiated eight years ago following a fortuitous request for stainless steel and nickel alloy finished parts from an existing supply chain partner. Richard Bulmer explains: “Initially, we subcontracted out the machining operations. However, we soon recognised that this could be a very efficient, direct supply chain so as the volume of work grew, we purchased a small lathe and then a deep hole boring machine. Within a year, we decided to go all-in and create an entire machining facility.”
“In-house machining has proven to be a very efficient, cost-effective way of securing long-term repeat business. It’s become a highly successful business model providing value-added services for end users. A good example is the sand screen components we produce for the oil & gas sector, which is a very specific down-hole product line only made by a handful of companies worldwide.”
Over the years, the machining business has grown steadily by offering high-quality added value services to existing customers, to whom it had historically supplied raw materials.
“Today, we have 14 machines on the shop floor, including a full range of testing equipment, with our in-house experts producing highly complex parts. The equipment includes simultaneous 5-axis lathes, and our latest acquisition is a 7-axis multitasking ‘mill turn’ machine.”
As a complement to the company’s core material supply business, the machining capabilities streamline the supply chain for end users. “These are demanding customers who require high-quality items with short lead times. Our team have the know-how and equipment to take machine raw material as needed, adding value, saving costs, and dramatically reducing lead-times. It’s a win-win situation,” smiles Richard.
*Meet the team
Neil Carne, General Manager Copeland & Craddock; Richard Bulmer, Director; Richard Coates, Business Development Manager; and Rodney Rice, Director
Complete packages of pipes and fittings
Richard Coates joined Langley Alloy in 2019 with the aim of developing a new arm of the business: supplying complete packages of pipes and fittings. “This was a completely new activity with new product forms for us,” explains Richard. “Having supplied super duplex bar and plate for many years, it was a logical step to complete the product offering. We started by stocking duplex and super duplex pipe up to 8 inches in diameter in the typical grades that Langley has long been famous for. We work closely with supply chain partners to put together complete packages, which target a different customer base of mostly fabricators.
“Typically, orders can involve up to 20-25 different types of pipes, flanges, fittings and other components. The items are primarily sourced from Langley Alloys’ main supply chain partner, Alleima.” Rodney goes on to explain the enormous amount of work that goes into compiling complete packages. “An order may include super duplex pipe from stock, bars from stock which we cut to size, elbows or fittings made from our stock by a subcontractor, machined components for which we have done some of the machining, and inspection and testing such as dye penetrant or ultrasonic tests, also done in-house.”
“It’s a complicated process, and ultimately I’m taking on the headaches for end users like ADNOC putting together these packages,” smiles Richard. “We assemble the items, then send them to the end user as a complete package ready for fabrication into pump skids, subsea equipment, etc. We’re replacing tasks normally assigned to five or six separate suppliers.”
Richard explains that customers appreciate the high level of service as end users work to tight deadlines and may impose penalties for late or incomplete deliveries.
“Langley’s great track record for serving end users is one of the reasons I joined the company,” he explains. Langley Alloys extensive in-house testing capabilities are an important component of the service they offer customers. All of these testing capabilities have been utilised on orders of piping and fittings (see box).
“In the UK, growth has continued steadily to the point where we have needed to utilise free space at the large nearby Copeland & Craddock site to store stock. We’ve added 17/4PH stainless steel into our bar stock in the UK, and in the last two years, we’ve significantly increased investment in nickel alloys. In 2024, the company also reinstated its aerospace AS9100 qualification with a view to increasing its activities in that area in future, explains Rodney. “Langley Alloys was AS9100 qualified for many years, as part of its original business was developing alloys for aerospace applications. We decided to reinstate it because some alloys in our portfolio potentially lend themselves to aerospace. Examples are the Nit 50 stainless steel grades and 625 nickel alloys.”
Langley Alloys in-house testing capabilities
| CMM | Ultrasonic testing |
| Hardness testing | Dye penetrant testing |
| Ferrite testing | PMI product analysis |
| Straightness testing | Radiation testing |
Steadily expanding business
Langley Alloys core activity remains distribution, and this activity has grown markedly in recent years, explains Rodney Rice.
“Globally, we’ve added around twenty staff in the last four years to meet the rising demand. In the USA, our activities have really taken off. We recently consolidated our Portland and Houston operations on a single large site. We’ve added Super 13 Chrome bar to the USA portfolio, and at the same time expanded the size ranges for our super duplex plate and bar products. This year we spent around half a million dollars on four new saws to upgrade the processing capabilities.”
Enabling sustainable supply chains
As the importance of sustainable business practices grows within the global supply chain, Langley Alloys believes there is a key role for distributors to play in helping customers reduce emissions, particularly those related to the repeated transportation of materials. “We have customers who are very interested in a leaner supply chain because it helps them to meet their sustainability goals. For example, we know there are customers in the USA, using high-performance alloys originally manufactured in Europe, who then ship it from the USA to Asia for machining, after which it’s transported to the USA for final use. It’s much more sustainable, cost-effective and faster to machine and inspect the bars at our facilities here, then send the finished product – which may only be 20% of the original weight – directly to the USA.” “Not only does this offer huge cost savings in transport and a reduced carbon footprint of the products, but also the supply chain is vastly shortened. With each transport leg taking eight to ten weeks, we can literally take five months off the lead time by doing everything here in-house. It makes much more sense for the products to be distributed, processed, inspected and machined here then shipped directly to the USA.”
Increased demand for Alloy 925
Alloy 925 is a grade that Langley Alloys has strongly promoted recently. It is increasingly specified in oil & gas applications, when conditions allow, as a lower-cost alternative to Alloy 718.
“Typical components are machined from something approaching a heavy-walled tubular section, where our deep hole borer is an extremely cost-effective first-stage machining operation. This saves our customers time and cost when machining, plus reduced shipping costs by removing weight,” explains Rodney Rice.
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Appearing in the August 2024 issue of Stainless Steel World Magazine, this Featured Story is just one of many insightful articles we publish. Subscribe today to receive 10 issues a year, available monthly in print and digital formats. – SUBSCRIPTIONS TO OUR DIGITAL VERSION ARE NOW FREE.
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