A THIRD generation family business says it fought back against the decline in manufacturing by marketing itself on the Internet.

Firwood Paints Ltd is based at Oakenbottom Road and was set up in 1925 to manufacture coatings for industrial applications.

The company's work includes heat-resistant coatings for furnaces and ovens and specialised paints for vehicle components and machinery.

However, the manufacturers of these components are not flourishing as much as they were.

Managiond directorMartin Wallen said: "We've seen our customers move out to places such as Eastern Europe and Asia, and it is difficult to supply at that distance."

The company does sell in countries like China and Pakistan, but products are often sourced locally.

"Not only were sales falling, but we found the market getting increasingly competitive as volumes and margins shrank. We needed a strategy that would reverse that trend," he said.

In 2004 the company invited consultants to take part in a DTI-supported project to look at best practice and the use of technology in the chemicals industry.

The consultants conducted a thorough audit of IT use in the company and identified areas where it could move forward.

The one that most interested the business was the use of the Internet for marketing.

Firwood turned to e-commerce specialists CSI who proposed a solution

On the new web site - www.firwood.co.uk - customers can now browse and select by product type, pack size and availability.