RADCLIFFE-based Trumeter Company Ltd has announced an export breakthrough into the notoriously difficult Japanese market. The company, which is run by the President of Bolton and Bury Chamber of Commerce, Peter Weidenbaum, is delighted with the success. They are supplying distance measurers to Tajima Tool Corp- oration of Tokyo - a distributor selling to 30,000 dealerships throughout Japan.

They have shipped the first 20ft container load consignment and it is due to be repeated every two months.

A spokesman said Tajima claimed 48 per cent of the hand tool market in Japan and would be selling Trumeter metric 5000 Road Measurers and 5620 twin-wheel Mini-Measurers against Japanese made competition. Their home manu- facturers are currently suffering from the high value of the Yen.

The order followed personal visits to Japan by managing director Mr Weidenbaum and works manager Ken Mansfield, who conducted training sessions in main- tenance and repair.

Nobby Matsuo, Tajima's senior managing director, told Trumeter it was 86 years since they learned measuring equipment technology from an English company. The Deputy Governor of the Bank of England, Howard Davies, recently visited Trumeter as part of a programme of regular consultations with export-led manufacturing companies.

"We have consciously decided to upgrade our industrial liaison effort as part of a refocusing of the Bank's priorities," he told them.

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