In our last blog we told you about our “special” philosophy here at Timberland and, hand in hand with our aim to manufacture special, one-off products as routine, we found ourselves looking for other real-life examples of where this is done.

The inspired example we settled on was the maternity ward at our wonderful local hospital, Mpilo, which has a long and proud history of delivering thousands of healthy babies over the past many, many decades.

There may be as many as 20 or 30 babies delivered at Mpilo in any one day. They are all very similar in many ways but, at the same time, as we well know, they are also unique and special in their own way. They are different genders, different weights, different blood groups and all have different nutritional and health needs. They are all deeply loved, appreciated and cared for by their parents.

These babies are carefully evaluated, monitored, fed and treated according to their own special and changing needs, and the doctors and staff check every day on their progress. Some go home the same day and some spend a few days longer in hospital. If something about them seems not right, the staff and doctors are alerted and move quickly to solve the problem.

It’s an analogy we like to think of when we describe how we look after our “special babies “, our special doors and windows which, in spite of offering the function of standard windows and doors, are different, closely monitored and loved with their own special needs catered for, much as newborn babies are . Thus, just as with “Mpilo babies”, our specialised products are soon are out in the world, resplendent and beautiful, growing up tough and capable, often exposed in difficult weather conditions but always contributing in so many ways for so many years to those around them.

We hope you enjoy this little special insight into our manufacturing philosophy