A North Yorkshire label company has retained its Investors in People standard after auditors were impressed by the strong commitment shown to its 65 employees.

GSM Graphic Arts, of Thirsk, first achieved the Investors in People status in March 1998. Now the principles involved in the scheme have become an integral part of the business strategy.

General manager Rudy Pearce said: "Like most manufacturers we'd had a challenging couple of years as a result of the downturn in the industry, and redundancies were looking likely. The processes involved in Investors in People meant we could identify where skills were missing and retrain people accordingly. We now have a multi-skilled workforce which makes us highly adaptable and enables us to be more competitive in the market place.

"It's made such a difference and all the jobs have remained safe."

GSM Graphic Arts specialises in domed, metal and plastic labels. Offering laser engraving, etching and anodising, assembly, design studio and light fabrication, it manufactures anything from a one-off product to a run of 10,000.

Updated: 10:42 Wednesday, April 14, 2004