Facilities
As you drive along Lincoln Road (B1190) you pass a stunning Elizabethan Hall within the sleepy village of Doddington. Just past a crossroads, you notice a break within the woodland on your right. Here you are greeted with business units beautifully dressed in cedar wood cladding. Welcome to the aptly named “Cedar Parc”. You’ve arrived at Richards of England.
ROE is proud of their heritage and thus has strived to only use British businesses and products where possible to construct and fitout their buildings. This celebration of all things British is evident from the moment you open the door at No 1 Cedar Parc.
The Showroom
A luxurious green tartan Axminster woollen carpet invites you deeper inside the No 1 Cedar Parc. The walls are painted in “Pompeian Ash” by British paint company “Little Greene.” These are gently lit by wall lighting above framed articles and artwork. Of course, you accept their invitation to continue down the hallway towards the warming glow of the lounge area.
You are met with a stunning contemporary lounge via a glass partition bearing an etched ROE emblem. The reading area is lit by a pendant light crafted from aluminium, which pays homage to the body shells of Aston Martins. A vintage rosewood coffee table sits beneath with a stylish brown leather button back sofa with chairs on either side.
Once you take a seat to embrace the lounge, you will notice the bar area on the left. A vast collection of spirits, beer, champagne and soft drinks sit proudly, and of course coffee, via a barista Sage coffee machine served in Aston Martin Heritage finery. Whether you request a Negroni or a macchiato, their attentive staff will more than happily oblige. All whilst ambient music plays, adding to the warm atmosphere.
To the right of the desk, you will notice a hand built bookcase by a local cabinet makers located within the “Cedar Parc” community. This is filled with rows of classic car reading materials and bespoke leather crafted restoration books. ROE restoration books are designed in-house and crafted from the same Connolly hide used on their custodian’s car.
As you walk towards the showroom the light begins to dance across the paintwork of an Aston Martin. Your attention is suddenly split as behind the Aston is something of a spectacle, a stand out feature. A ‘black and white’ 8 meter mural depicts an iconic racing scene involving Sir Stirling Moss at Goodwood in the DBR1. You suddenly begin to reminisce of the time when you first saw an Aston Martin. Perhaps this was Goldfinger, Thunderball or GoldenEye on the big screen? Either way, you remember the real reason why you came. The cars, and ROE already have the ones you enquired about ready for you to test drive. As you sit waiting patiently for your test drive to begin the mural begins to unfold, revealing a route to the Lincolnshire countryside.
Main Workshop
As you enter the ROE's main workshop you are met with a hive of activity...
Disassembly & Reassembly
The ROE workshops are capable of housing seven Aston Martins at any one time. All of ROE's restorations begin with the initial disassembly. This takes place at the back of the main workshop within an enclosed bay. Following the fabrication and paint stage, Aston Martins return here to be assigned to a bay. Here they remain in situ whilst they are reassembled. Whilst safety critical parts are always replaced during a restoration, ROE always attempt to restore original parts to preserve the Aston Martin's originality.
Trim
The main workshop also contains a fully fitted trim shop. ROE implement the same leather techniques as were used back when the Aston Martins were first crafted. Therefore, ROE has various hand tools that you wouldn't find in your typical modern trim shop. This has resulted in a fantastic collection of leather, templates and original classic car parts.
Electrics
ROE also has all the equipment required for electrical repairs, including everything from the recreation of wiring looms to smallest of repairs.
Mechanical
Gearbox and differential rebuilds are messy jobs. Therefore, ROE has specially designated areas where the mechanical disassembly and stripping takes place. Similarly, clean areas are sectioned off to prevent contamination.
Fab shop
On exiting a side door through the main workshop, you find yourself in the Fabrication Workshop...
ROE's fabrication workshop is fully equipt to carry out any repair work or panel work to your vehicle. They are able to work on both aluminium and steel bodied vehicles. ROE can also fabricate components out of stainless steel and brass. The workshop consists of M.I.G and T.I.G welding plants, a band saw, an English wheel, a guillotine, sheet metal rollers, and various other specialist equipment. ROE are able to work on multiple projects thanks to the use of rotisseries and jigs.
Body Shop
The smell of paint wafts through the air and invites you into the the next building. As you open the door you realise that ROE have an on-site body shop, complete with a paint booth...
Aston Martins begin their journey within the paint shop as a bare shell following media blasting. The shell and panels are then cleaned using several different grades of paper, before being painted in an epoxy primer for protection and adhesion.
After the epoxy primer stage the body is sanded in preparation for a light skim of body filler in areas. Another coat of epoxy is then applied, followed by multiple coats of high-build primer. Finally, the body is left to settle.
The body is guide-coated and blocked through to ensure the alignment of all the panels, before being fully primed in high-build again. Following this, the body is blocked again and the panels are stripped off ready its final primer stage.
The Aston Martin is then prepped for paint and reverse masked with chassis protection coatings being applied. This includes two coats of a light texture stone chip and two coats of a satin black selemix.
All reveals and apertures are then painted in the chosen colour. This reduces the chance of overspray and allowed easy access for the painter.
Four base coats are then applied, followed by multiple applications of clear coat. Once dry the Aston Martin is blocked with seven grades of sanding paper before being polished with 3 grades of polish using various pad attachments.
Finally, the Aston Martin is de-masked and cleaned ready for delivery back to the main workshop.
