A COUNTY firm is celebrating 25 years of keeping motorists moving.

Family company JET Plant, based in Vale Business Park, Evesham, works for local authorities helping them repair footpaths and roads by removing the top asphalt surface before the road is newly re-surfaced.

JET has a fleet of 30 road planing machines, varying in size from 350mm wide to over 2 metres wide, which literally scrape the top surface off the road. The sophisticated computerised technology ensures a precise and consistent depth is removed, allowing for varying road contours.

Managing director Sean Witheford said: “2015 marks a significant milestone in our company’s history. We are very proud of our trading heritage, of our continued commitment to innovation within the industry and of our relationships with our customers and suppliers. We are equally proud of the outstanding achievement from our dedicated colleagues - a great reflection of the passion we share for customer service, quality and professionalism."

The firm was started by Stuart Witheford at premises in Badsey Road, Evesham in 1990 with one road planer working on the Isle of Wight, but JET has grown significantly since those early days. However, it is still very much a family-run business with Mr Witheford's three sons Sean, Scott and Brian now involved in the business, which employs 114 people based in two depots in Evesham and Newton Abbott.

Other significant milestones over the last 25 years include the acquisition of three firms (Henson Plant Hire, Tetlaw and RW Prince Planing) and in 2010, having out-grown its office and yard in Badsey Road, the company moved into new premises in Vale Park in Evesham. The new offices, depot and workshop facility enabled Jet to continue to expand and offer improved levels of customer service. Last year a major £2.75m investment was made in new equipment firmly establishing JET Plant as a leading company in the road planing industry with 30 planers in the fleet and setting it on a course for sustained growth and another 25 years of trading.

At the recent delivery of the latest road planer, supplier Wirtgen gave a small presentation to founder Stuart Witheford to celebrate not only the firm’s 25th anniversary but also the 80th Wirtgen planer purchased by JET Plant.