Thetford & Spinflo

They are global brands in the leisure vehicle industry, but Nigel Hutson discovered even more about Thetford and Spinflo at the UK factory

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THESE DAYS, Thetford is the name usually at the top of the list when you think of caravan appliances, and that's no surprise when you consider that 99% of the toilets fitted to mainstream UK leisure vehicles are by Thetford, as are 96% of the cookers and 58% of the fridge/freezers.

International business

Thetford toilets and fridges are made in the Netherlands, but the sinks, hobs, ovens and full cookers are produced here in the UK, at its Rotherham, South Yorkshire, factory.

I recently visited to learn more about the history of the company, and to see various products being manufactured.

Back in the 1960s, a Sheffield ophthalmologist, Dr John Wilkie, acquired a Spinflo machine to 'play' with as a hobby. As the name implies, this spins sheet metal at high speed, while tooling forms the shapes.

Dr Wilkie discovered that using this method, consistent levels of accuracy could be achieved, especially in forming bowls, which he later began supplying to the caravan industry. Then in 1975, Spinflo Limited was founded.

Within a short time, Spinflo Limited went on to manufacture a two-burner hob and grill (which some of us are old enough to remember!). Over the next couple of decades, there were many developments — combination hob/sink/drainer units, four-burner hobs and eventually full cooker units, among others, which Spinflo produced initially for the leisure vehicle market and later for the marine sector.

In 1996/1997, the company exported its first products to Australia.

At the turn of the millennium, Spinflo opened its powder coating plant, and the enamel plant followed shortly afterwards in 2003.