The owner of Brown & Cope, a Dunedin-based suspension manufacturer that dates back to 1937, says he is the sole manufacturer of leaf springs in Dunedin and Central Otago, one of two in the South Island.
What set Brown & Cope apart was its use of traditional blacksmithing techniques, forging the springs with furnaces, tongs and anvils.
As far as Mr Sheridan was aware, no other manufacturer in the country was using this technique to make springs.
"I just stick to the way I've always been brought up and taught from here. Why do I need to change?" he said.
"Technology hasn’t really changed, for me."
Mr Sheridan bought the company in 2002 with a business partner before buying it out completely a few years ago, but had worked at the company since the mid-’80s.
Despite both the passing of time and changes in technology, Mr Sheridan said business was as consistent as ever.
Leaf springs are a type of shock absorber that serves as the main suspension system for vehicles.
They are made from thin plates, or leaves, that stack upon each other to create a flexible spring.
Newer trucks were being fitted out with self-levelling airbags on their trailers, and were completely springless, he said.
But airbags could still burst, and "thousands" of trucks still used leaf springs.
All the workshop’s equipment had stayed the same for decades, except for a steel scarfing machine.
Mr Sheridan said he had taught himself how to use the machines by watching the previous owners, and could now operate every heavy duty machine in the workshop.
"Standing near it for all those years, watching it all day and watching someone operate it, it’s just natural."
His business stretched into Timaru, Southland and the West Coast, and he was even mailed springs to repair from trucking companies and independent garages, he said.
Because of the sheer amount of vehicles Mr Sheridan outfitted, Brown & Cope was deemed an essential service during the Covid-19 pandemic.
"You’ve got to keep the vehicles on the road to deliver parcels, deliver food to the supermarkets," he said.
"If they’ve got leaf springs and they go and break them, well that truck is off the road."
Mr Sheridan said he had worked on buses, trains and classic cars such as the Ford Mustang and Falcon.
Many customers had passed through Mr Sheridan’s workshop over the past 37 years, some of whom he did not even charge for his service.
"I know I should, because you don't make money, but I don't mind helping people at all — I really don't."
