A LEADING electrical contractor is celebrating its 20th anniversary today,

Two decades ago, Andrew Affleck set up Affleck Electrical Ltd and was the company's only employee.

Soon, he was joined by his son-in-law Nigel Whelan, who began as an apprentice and has overseen the running of the company since Andrew retired.

Today, the company on Greenbridge Road has 26 employees and branched out into offering plumbing, heating, and energy panel installation through its Affleck Mechanical Services and Affleck Energy divisions.

Nigel looks back fondly on his time working with his father-in-law..

Nigel said: "Andy and I always had a strong ethos focused on the quality of the workmanship, the relationship we build with our customers, and the high standard of the staff we have.

"As we're family, we do feel very passionate about the business, and as Swindonians, we like to think that we are not just working in Swindon but working for Swindon.

"We work with the local authorities and work on projects that we know are going to be good for the town as a whole.

"In the early days, we did jobs for Honda Manufacturing - we were down there every week - and we've worked on Wat Tyler House, the conversion of the Registry Office, and most recently, a storage warehouse in South Marston.

"When you have been involved in something that you know will improve people's lives, that's very pleasing."

Nigel revealed the reasons for the company's continuous success and expansion.

He added: "There's such a diverse range of things that we do, we're like a one-stop shop for our customers.

"Our team are very technically capable in lots of different areas - domestic work, industrial or commercial work, electrical testing, and security.

"The lads are always presentable, polite, and professional.

"The most satisfying thing for me is the fact that, historically, we have always had team members that are like family to us.

"Even though we are one of the biggest electrical contractors in the area, we still feel very close to our team.

"Our staff want to work with us because we treat them well and that's why we have such good staff retainment."

To mark their anniversary year, the company will host a party for its staff and some of its customers next month.

Founder Andrew Affleck will pop in on Monday to chat with his old team about the past 20 years - and the next 20 too.

Nigel added: "He comes in every week, he likes to potter around and see how everything's going.and he'll join our monthly meeting to look back on what we've achieved so far and talk about our plans for the future.

"We'll be looking at making sure our mechanical and electrical divisions work together cohesively - people think of mechanical and electrical equipment as very separate things but they go together hand-in-hand.

"There might also be expansions into fire alarm installation and more security work, there's always room for improvement."