Asset, which is part of the UK-based infrastructure, building and construction products group, Hill & Smith Holdings, achieved £1.3million in sales during October, the highest ever for the company despite the current economic climate.

Now in its 13th year of trading, and with a turnover of more than £11 million, Asset credits an upturn in the UK housing industry for the recent increase in demand for its patented high-density polyethelyne (HDPE) pipe systems known as Weholite.

The company has also won some large contracts for flood-alleviation projects on behalf of major water companies in the midlands and the north east of England.

Simon Thomas, managing director of Asset, said: "October has certainly proved to be an excellent month for the company and we're hopeful that this signals a recovery in the housing sector, which accounts for a substantial proportion of our business.

"We've managed to keep afloat during the recession thanks to a number of projects in the utilities industry, including upgrades to water treatment works and some large-scale flood alleviation projects."

The company now has a forward order book of more than £2million to take them into 2010 and have even increased staff levels by almost 10 per cent.

Manufacturing output in Wales has decreased by five per cent in the last decade and figures from the Welsh Assembly Government show that jobs in the sector are down by 15,000 in the last year alone.

Simon continues: "We managed to keep redundancies to a minimum over the last 18 months by re-skilling and redeploying staff from our production line to the fabrication facility and it's encouraging that now we're looking to increase our headcount once again.

"Interestingly, the vast majority of our recent business has come from outside Wales and it's disappointing to think that where Welsh businesses are spending they are perhaps not looking at those suppliers closest to home first."

Last year Asset invested in a £1.2million production line which produces a 3.5m diameter pipe, the largest HDPE pipe available in the market. It was hoped that the investment would lead to the creation of more skilled manufacturing jobs at the plant but this was delayed by the recession. The company now believes it will increase its workforce further during 2010 if the market continues to grow.

Simon goes on to say "There is an increasing shortage of skilled manufacturing jobs across Wales as the focus continues to steer towards jobs within the service sector and the job losses during the recession has only added to this. We are delighted to be able to offer more fantastic employment opportunities over the coming years."