A FAMILY-RUN Halesowen firm is celebrating after securing a £300,000 loan to import a revolutionary Australian acrylic product.

Bosses at Blackheath Products Ltd believe the new product Akril will boost sales by £1.5million a year to £25million.

The coloured acrylic panels which have the look and feel of glass, but with 25 times the strength, and will appeal to interior designers and architects.

HSBC’s Birmingham Commercial Centre organised the funding from the bank's £500million West Midlands SME Fund.

Blackheath Products is a fifth generation company founded in the 1930s as a timber component supplier for the furniture industry.

It now operates from a 100,000 square foot site on Fairfield Park and employs 105 people.

Managing director Ian Foster, whose great grandfather founded the firm and whose daughter is also employed within the company, said: “We are excited by the potential of this new product and we think it will especially appeal to the architectural and interior design sectors of the construction and furniture industries, which looks for something that little bit different for their projects.

"The company that supplies Akril originally focused on the automotive sector, but it is now targeting other sectors.”

Joanne Yapp-Pennino, HSBC Birmingham area commercial director, added: “Blackheath Products is a well-known local business that has been in family hands since being founded in the late 30s.

"The company is always striving to innovate and offer a better service to its customers and this new product marks the next positive stage in the company’s development."