THE Ritherdon family has more than a few tricks up its sleeves in the manufacture of boxes.

The founder of the Darwen-based firm, Percy Ritherdon, was an amateur magician whose hobby was to design elaborate stage tricks for the music hall stars.

He built the cabinets for disappearing acts and for the 'sawing a lady in half' trick that delighted Victorian audiences throughout the country.

One of his top customers was a magician called Chung Ling Soo who died in the early 1900s when the 'catch a bullet in the teeth' stunt went tragically wrong.

Today, Ritherdon & Company is still in the business of making boxes, albeit of a more practical nature. The family-owned business is a market leader in sheet metal enclosures and supplies meter boxes to most of the UK's electricity companies.

Howard Ritherdon, Percy's grandson, is now at the helm of the company which was originally founded in Bolton in 1895.

"My grandfather was a chemist who started out by electro-plating bicycle parts," he explained. "He then moved in to stove-enamelling and, in the 1920s and 30s, manufactured concrete-filled metal mantelpieces which were enamelled to make them look like wood."

From 1939 to 1945, all production was geared to the war effort, including electrical equipment used on warships.

In 1947, Ritherdon & Company moved to Lorne Street in Darwen in what was the world's first purpose-build steam tram shed.

Since the 1970s, the company has specialised in manufacturing enclosures and control panel metalwork, particularly for the electricity distribution industry. It is now the largest supplier of steel domestic meter boxes and meter box refurbishment units to the UK's regional electricity companies as well as providing control and regulator boxes to other outlets.

Howard Ritherdon said the company had also designed its own range of products, offering secure storage in a wide range of environments.

Its 'SecuriBox' range includes a small personal safe which can be fitted to caravans, motor homes and leisure craft to store valuable items such as cameras, watches and passports. Another version has been designed for the hotel industry for installation in bedrooms where guests can store their valuables.

A 'Stewards SecuriBox' was developed for Arsenal FC to house the folders that are used by officials on matchdays.

The 'Ritherdon MediBox' is intended for use in nursing and residential care homes, hospitals and schools as a means of safe storage for medicines.

"We are always looking for new niche markets," explained Howard. "Our works director John Wright, for example, is a keen diver who spotted a gap in the market and we now produce a range of diving accessories which are sold throughout the UK."

With a 30-strong workforce, Howard believes Ritherdon is big enough to offer a comprehensive service, while being flexible enough to cope with prototyping and short lead-time production.

"With the investment we have made in our machinery and in our workforce, we feel we are very competitive," added Howard.