Rags-to-riches manufacturer is a Murray Bridge success story

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From genuinely humble beginnings, a company little known in Murray Bridge has grown to be the second-largest manufacturer of roller shutters in Australia.

Founded in 1984 by newly arrived immigrant Ibrahim Elassaad, based on no more than a dream and a will to achieve, the business began as a window roller shutter manufacturer at Alberton – with a staff of one.

After 10 years, increasing local success and with a staff of six, Dr Elassaad started looking for a larger space.

Mount Barker was his preferred site, as land was cheap and plentiful, but a deal to move there didn’t work out.

It was suggested he look to Murray Bridge where, in 1994, he found a disused factory on Doecke Road.

At the time the space was full of rubbish, had holes in the roof and bird droppings all over the floor.

But it was the space he needed and, after two to three years of hard work, it had begun to be turned into the engineering powerhouse it is today.

“In the beginning I had to be convinced about Murray Bridge, as it seemed such a long way from Adelaide,” Dr Elassaad said.

“It does cost us a little more in terms of transportation and distribution, but we have the space we need to grow and the skilled people to make that happen.”

One of the biggest issues with this kind of manufacturing was the space needed for the bespoke machinery, Dr Elassaad said.

The machinery was long and heavy and didn’t like being moved around, and all the raw materials the company used were imported from overseas.

But this wasn’t a business with high staff turnover.

CW Products had more than 80 staff dotted around Australia, many of whom were specialists, he said; the bulk were situated at the Murray Bridge HQ.

At a 40th birthday celebration on Wednesday, managing director David Elassaad – the founder’s son – asked the assembled staff to raise their hands based on a countdown of years they had been part of the CW Products “family”.

The vast majority had their hands in the air well past five years, with some having stayed with the business for more 20 years.

Dr Elassaad said he was proud of the business he had created, and was determined for CW Products to become Australia’s number one manufacturer in its industry within the next few years.

With more than 500 customers across the nation and staff in every state and territory, CW Products is already a Murray Bridge powerhouse.

Its success is a testament to the hard work of an immigrant with a vision who was determined to build a new life and to leave a lasting legacy for his family and his new community.

Correction: Names and their spelling have been updated since this story was published.