Derbyshire Employers offering £500 Sign Up bonuses amid ‘staffing squeeze’
East Midlands employers are going above and beyond to recruit new staff – offering enticing perks including bonuses of up to £500.
Businesses are facing the most severe shortage of job candidates on record due to the post-lockdown surge in the economy and Brexit, according to the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC).
But award-winning local firm, Sky Recruitment Solutions, says its clients are coming up with lucrative ways to attract the right candidates.
Sky, which has offices in Derby, Burton, Mansfield, Ripley, Huddersfield, and a sister white collar recruitment company called Capella Professional, based in Nottingham, is currently half-way through filling 200 jobs on behalf of online retailer Buy It Direct, at its new 563,000 sq ft warehouse near Castle Donington.
Buy It Direct is offering a £500 attendance bonus, with half paid after eight weeks and the remainder after a second eight-week period.
Meanwhile, another of Sky’s clients, a Burton-on-Trent-based warehouse and distribution firm which supplies the crafters industry, which is looking to fill 50 picking and packing roles with general warehouse duties, have a £250 attendance bonus on offer, if workers have less than three absences in the run-up to Christmas.
Another of Sky’s clients, TEX Plastics, in Allenton, Derby, which manufactures plastic components for life critical applications, electronic products and medical solutions, which has 20 vacancies, has a £25 weekly bonus based on attendance.
And a car manufacturer on Sky’s books, based in Foston, South Derbyshire, has increased its rates, with a bonus that is paid once workers go permanent. Ten to 15 production operatives are needed at the site.
David Torrington, Managing Director at Sky Recruitment Solutions said: “In 20 years, I have never seen anything like this in the sector, it is unparalleled. Never before have employers been offering such high incentives to encourage staff to join them. My concern is how businesses maintain this going forward. With higher rates of pay, there is a danger that these extra costs will be passed onto consumers.”
Beckie Elliott, Sky Recruitment Solutions’ business manager, said: “Most companies are now paying whatever they can to incentivise workers and motivate them to be able to stay.
“Obviously retention is important for them, but the turnover of staff is ridiculously high at the moment.”
Giving reasons for low retention rates, Beckie added: “Workers have more of a choice now of where they are going to work, rather than how it used to be.
“They could start a job and the next day, they could be offered a different job for £2 more an hour.
“Clients are doing what they can – it’s really competitive, our role is to partner our clients to attract and retain the right staff. We are trying to advise clients on the best approach to getting people through the door.”
To find out more, or for more information about any of the above vacancies, visit www.skyrecruitmentsolutions.co.uk
Green glory for Cawarden
Derby-based Specialist Contractor, Cawarden, has claimed two new awards to add to its 2021 collection of prizes – receiving gold and silver recognition from the Green Apple Awards for Environmental Best Practice delivered at the former Summit Colliery site in Nottinghamshire.
They competed against more than 800 other nominations and were presented with their trophies and certificates at a glittering presentation ceremony hosted by Liz Kendall MP at the Royal Horseguards Hotel, London on November 15th, 2021.
Cawarden was awarded the accolades for the remediation and conservation work it carried out at the former colliery site on behalf of Bolsover Properties Ltd. Their work enabled the site to be re-developed for commercial/industrial use – all whilst providing a long-term sustainable solution to protect the existing botanical diversity that had flourished, including the Common Spotted-Orchid and Bee Orchid, and maintain the conservation status of Dingy Skipper butterflies.
The vision for the site was brought to life through the creation of new habitats and the relocation of rare species from their current locations on the site to the periphery of the development.
The project succeeded beyond expectations and has provided the population with a long-term future in the area. Numbers are such that expansion into new habitats – beyond the existing range – will likely occur in the future.
William Crooks, Cawarden Managing Director, said: “We are delighted to have won gold and silver in the International Green Apple Environment Awards. These prestigious award wins have shone a light on our unwavering commitment and passion for the environment. Also, the partnership approach we take to supporting our clients to achieve their sustainable development goals.
“We hope our work at Summit Colliery helps others around the world to learn from our achievements. These awards are a testament to the hard work and dedication of our teams who continue to raise the bar in the delivery of our works through industry and environmental best practices.”
Darren Rideout, Head of Land Regeneration & Planning at Bolsover Properties Ltd, congratulated Cawarden on their success: “Congratulations to Cawarden on winning gold and silver at the Green Apple Awards. I am incredibly proud that Summit Colliery has received this international award recognition.”
As a result of Cawarden’s Green Apple Award success, they have been invited to have their winning paper published in The Green Book, the leading international work of reference on environmental best practice, so that others around the world can follow their example and learn from their achievement. They could also progress to represent the United Kingdom in the Green World Awards 2022 and have 100 trees planted in their name as part of the United Nations Billion Trees initiative.
The Green Apple Awards began in 1994 and have become established as the country’s major recognition for environmental endeavour among companies, councils, communities and countries.
The awards are organised by The Green Organisation – an international, independent, non-political, non-profit environment group dedicated to recognising, rewarding and promoting environmental best practice around the world.
The Green Apple Awards are supported by the Environment Agency, the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health, the Chartered Institution for Wastes Management, REHIS and other independent bodies.
University of Derby is launching a new Business School and inviting the community to be involved in the planning process
Thoughts invited on plans for Ratcliffe on Soar Power Station site
Residents and interested parties have been invited to have their say on plans for the Ratcliffe on Soar Power Station site and a Local Development Order (LDO) that could give the green light to new industry and business projects and the potential of thousands of permanent highly-skilled jobs.
The power station, owned by international energy company Uniper, will close at the end of September 2024 in line with government policy to end coal-fired power generation.
Rushcliffe Borough Council want to hear views at rushcliffe.ratcliffeLDO.com from Monday November 29 and at two local events on helping secure its long-term future with a site of local, regional and national importance after its closure.
If taken forward, the LDO would grant planning permission for a range of modern industrial uses on the redeveloped site, including advanced manufacturing, low-carbon energy production, battery production, energy storage, logistics, and research and development.
A masterplan for the site is currently being prepared to support the redevelopment, which will guide growth and development over the coming years including the proposals linked to the previously announced East Midlands Freeport and the Development Corporation that could create further jobs and significant investment.
The emerging vision for the site sets out the guiding principles by which the development would be brought forward, and seeks to deliver:
- A zero-carbon technology and energy hub for the East Midlands
- Highly skilled jobs
- Modern industry and business uses, served by on-site sustainable energy generation and storage
- Advanced manufacturing, for example to produce electric car batteries
- A hub for research, development, and innovation, through links with universities, business support organisations and established industry.
- Tuesday November 30, 3pm-7pm at Thrumpton Village Hall, Church Lane, Thrumpton, NG11 0AX
- Tuesday December 7, 3pm-7pm at Gotham Memorial Hall, Nottingham Road, Gotham, NG11 0HE
County council approves 10-year vision for Nottinghamshire
A new plan which sets out Nottinghamshire County Council’s 10-year vision to deliver a “healthy, prosperous, and greener future” for communities has been approved.
The Nottinghamshire Plan is a nine-point blueprint shaped by the responses to the Big Notts Survey, which was conducted earlier this year and led to more than 12,000 residents having their say on their hopes and aspirations for the county.
County council leaders say the plan will address residents’ hopes and concerns as Nottinghamshire and the country continues its recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic and look to the next 10 years and beyond.
Levelling up life opportunities are at the heart of the wide-ranging plan by investing in priority communities, improving Nottinghamshire’s roads and pavements, and making core council services such as adults and children’s social care fit for the future.
The aspirational plan also outlines how securing greater investment by bringing more powers and funding from London to Nottinghamshire would support the delivery of major infrastructure projects like HS2 and the East Midlands Freeport.
Responding to residents’ concerns about climate change, the county council has also set itself a bold target of making all its activity net carbon neutral by 2030 – as well as planting more than 250,000 trees to support local biodiversity.
Set out in nine ambitions, the Nottinghamshire Plan details actions the council will fulfil over the next four years, including:
- piloting Family Hubs which give access to all family support services under one roof;
- providing sufficient school places in good schools so that parents have greater choice;
- creating the world’s first 5G Connected Forest within the historic Sherwood Forest area.
Council purchases shopping centre for £9.9m
Leicester City Council is the new owner of Leicester’s Haymarket Centre. The council has purchased the landmark shopping centre for £9.9m after securing a deal before the property went to market.
Funding for the purchase comes from a pot of £10m set aside for capital investment within the council’s overall capital programme. This funding can only be spent on buying or improving buildings or highways, and not on running services.
Before purchasing the property, the council was a major tenant of the previous owners, contributing 19 percent of all revenues paid to them. It paid rent for the Haymarket car park, Haymarket Theatre, Haymarket House (sub-let to Travelodge) and Haymarket Health (sexual health clinic).
Savings from rent payments and the income generated from rent paid by other tenants will give the council an income to continue to support critical services.
The shopping centre will be a major addition to the council’s Corporate Estate portfolio, which is worth more than £112m and includes buildings such as the Corn Exchange and Loseby Lane properties, but also 400 industrial units and 263 retail units, more than half of which are in neighbourhoods.
It also supports small businesses and start-ups by letting workspace at a low rent. However, the entire estate generates an annual income of more than £7m which the council uses to support services.
Leicester City Mayor, Sir Peter Soulsby, said: “This council has invested in property in Leicester for many generations. Unlike many other councils, we are continuing to invest in our own city, and these assets make a huge contribution to its economic prosperity.
“The Haymarket Centre is a significant and important addition to our holdings. It also fits in with our wider regeneration of this area, where we have already invested in a new bus station, the pedestrianisation of surrounding streets, and a new link road to St Margaret’s bus station.
“Government cuts to our revenue budget mean that like all councils we face very difficult spending decisions in the coming months. Using our capital budget in this way will generate much-needed income that we can spend on jobs and services, and will also give us the opportunity to have a positive impact on the city centre and the many businesses and jobs it provides.”
Built in the early 1970s, the Haymarket Centre is currently home to 65 shopping outlets. Major tenants include Matalan and B&M. The units leased by Primark, TK Maxx and Metro Bank are owned by another local authority outside the East Midlands.
The council will work with the current, experienced managing agents to operate the centre, whilst working on a medium to long-term plan looking at how its performance could be improved.
Focus to help decarbonise homes after Community Renewal Fund grant announced for Nottingham
Focus has welcomed the news that Nottingham City Council has been awarded £3m funding from the Government’s UK Community Renewal Fund (UK CRF), which will help accelerate the city’s 2028 net zero carbon ambition.
The city council will use the grant to deliver four key projects, including a £384,000 Nottingham Carbon Neutral Housing scheme which Focus has been appointed to advise on. The Cost vs Carbon Retrofit Roadmap seeks to transform the city’s existing housing stock of nearly 153,500 dwellings – 61.4% of which have an energy performance certificate of band D or lower – into carbon neutral homes using advanced retrofit strategies, fabric improvements and integration of solar photovoltaics and air-source heat pumps.
The project will enable the city council and stakeholders to introduce a programme of works in a logical manner with an increased level of engagement and understanding amongst citizens that will ease the way towards carbon neutral housing. It will develop the framework to deliver change at the pace and scale needed to effectively address the UK Government’s 2050 target and need to decarbonise existing homes.
Benefits include:
- Bridging the current knowledge gap between retrofit theory (what we think we can achieve) and retrofit practice (what is actually feasible).
- Identifying the most cost-effective retrofit strategies.
- A unified digital approach to retrofit evaluation to enable the gathering of large scale evidenced insights to support policy, industry and academia in the route to decarbonisation.
- Engaging the community and the workforce to make the implementation of the retrofit strategies more attractive and feasible.
- Training opportunities that can lead to new products, services, the creation of jobs, and an opportunity to gain further qualifications.
Food and gift fair to showcase Lincoln’s newest shoppable superstars
Visitors will be able to fill their boots full of Lincolnshire’s best produce, from unique gins that pack a punch of balanced and bold flavours to a curated array of retro hand-picked designer clothing at this year’s Lincolnshire Food and Gift Fair on Saturday 27 and Sunday 28 November.
Lots of new, local and exciting exhibitors will be taking stands at the Lincolnshire Showground, including popular Anelise Home and Crowstick Interiors, which are both exhibiting at the event for the first time.
Anelise Home, offers stylish interiors with a personal touch. Liz Milns, owner of Anelise Home, said: “Our team is honoured to be exhibiting for the first time at the Food and Gift Fair. It’s such a great opportunity to meet people from all over the country, as well as some familiar local faces, and, of course, to get into the Christmas spirit.
“Attendees can expect to shop for beautiful Christmas decorations, handmade bespoke cushions, home accessories and gifts. They can take their time browsing our collections and ask us any questions to help get those Christmas lists ticked off.”
Another exciting exhibitor is Crowstick Interiors, which is all about colour and focused on brightening any settee, chair, or corner of a room with cheery, high-quality colourful handmade items.
Sophie Crosbie, owner of Crowstick Interiors, said: “This is our first time at the Lincolnshire Food and Gift Fair – although we have attended every year as guests – and we can’t wait to get involved and help visitors find their perfect gifts across the weekend.
“We’re hugely looking forward to seeing some of our favourite stalls, plus all the newcomers. It really feels like the start of the festive period when the Food and Gift Fair comes around and here at Crowstick we wish all stall holders the very best of luck.”
With more than 30 new exhibitors this year, it’s promising to be an exciting fair for all. Foodies should lookout for Tiffin & Co Bakehouse, Fudged Up, and The Oink Company, to grab some of the most scrumptious and handmade treats around. For those after something a bit different, be sure to check out what artistic and creative gifts and treats you can find at Art Monster Studios, The March Hare and Vivified Ceramics.
The ever-popular cookery workshops in the Lincolnshire Kitchen are introducing two new hosts this year: Fiona Lucas from Lincolnshire Cookery School and Ruchita Green from Masala Masters. Alongside this, there will be plenty of activities to keep little ones busy at one of the biggest festive fairs in the county. The famous Santa’s Workshop area will be ready to provide hours of free entertainment, including two new additions, festive imp painting provided by St Barnabas Hospice and cake decorating hosted by Back Garden Bakery.
Lincolnshire’s Food and Gift Fair’s Toy Appeal will also be returning after its success in 2019. Visitors are asked to bring an unwrapped toy or gift and place it in the provided Santa’s sack. All contributions will be donated to the Bridge Church.
Sian Wade, senior leader at Bridge Church, said: “The project is quite simple. We receive referrals from social workers, family support workers, other professionals who work with people who will be struggling financially to provide for themselves and/or their families this Christmas. We then arrange for the workers or the families to come and choose some items for themselves and their children on a week in December, which will be managed carefully from a health and safety perspective with Covid-19 in mind.
“We are so pleased to be partnering with Lincolnshire Food and Gift Fair again this year. Last year, we were able to help more than 500 families and individuals with gifts and food for Christmas, showing them that their local community really cares. Many will be struggling this year so working with the Lincolnshire Agricultural Society and the generous visitors to this year’s Food and Gift Fair is incredibly valued.”
Jayne Southall, CEO at the Lincolnshire Showground, said: “Anelise Home and Crowstick Interiors have all made their mark on the Lincolnshire community, so we’re thrilled they will be joining us this year. They – along with hundreds of other exhibitors – will provide visitors with the biggest celebration of Lincolnshire produce this winter, and the perfect opportunity for some festive shopping too.”
The Lincolnshire Food and Gift Fair is open from 9am to 5pm on Saturday 27 November and from 9am to 4pm on Sunday 28 November 2021. Visitors will have access to free parking. Tickets for the Fair can be bought online at £5 each (plus booking fees) in advance and will be £6 on the day, with under 5s going free.
Please visit lincolnshireshowground.co.uk/food-gift or call 01522 522900 for further details.
Fresh plans submitted for 885-home community
A revised application has now been submitted that will deliver a new community containing a primary school and up to 885 new homes if plans are approved in Blaby on a site allocated by the Council for development.
Strategic land developer, L&Q Estates, has submitted a revised outline planning application to Blaby District Council for Hastings Fields at Leicester Forest East on land north of the A47 Hinckley Road in Kirby Muxloe.
The amended application involves demolishing existing buildings and building 885 homes which will include a combination of one, two, three and four-bedroom properties with 25 per cent being affordable houses for local people in housing need.
Newly-created accessible public open spaces, land reserved for a new primary school, natural green spaces, improved cycle and pedestrian connectivity and highway improvements are also included in the proposals.
The main access from Hinckley Road will be by way of a new roundabout junction which will incorporate a loop road to facilitate a diverted or new bus route within the site.
The changes to the application include additional land to the south east of the previous site boundary that includes an extra section of land extending from the A47, wrapping around Leicester Forest Rugby Club and joining the previous site boundary.
The addition of the new land would create a second point of access for pedestrians and cyclists on to Hinckley Road.
Richard Edwards, group planning director at L&Q Estates whose headquarters are in Warwick, said a revised application had been submitted to provide a more comprehensive and cohesive development that has walking and cycling at its heart.
He said: “We have brought in Dr Stefan Kruczkowski, a nationally recognised urban design practitioner, into the design team to help shape the development into a truly sustainable 21st century development.
“The final detailed design will be governed by a comprehensive design code to ensure the key design and movement aspects are delivered as set out in the application. We have submitted the new plans which further improve the design of the scheme on the site which was allocated for housing as part of Blaby’s Local Plan.
“The site area has increased from 39.11 hectares to 44.01 hectares and the number of proposed houses has increased from 750 to 885. A one-form entry primary school is planned along with improving walking and cycling connectivity which is really important in creating an integrated sustainable community.”
The application is expected to be discussed by Blaby District Council Planning Committee early in 2022.
Sales grow at Eurocell while effective action taken to mitigate cost inflation and supply chain pressures
Eurocell, the manufacturer, recycler and distributor of window, door and roofline PVC products, remains on track to deliver profit before tax for the full year in line with market expectations despite ongoing cost inflation and supply chain pressures.
In a trading update, the Derbyshire-based company said that group sales for the four months to 31 October were up 18% compared to 2019 and 5% compared to 2020, with the latter reflecting a very strong second half last year.
For the ten months to 31 October 2021, sales were up 21% compared to 2019 and 38% compared to 2020.
Eurocell said: “The positive sales trends from H1 have continued into the second half of the year, supported by good underlying demand in our markets. We are taking effective action to mitigate ongoing cost inflation and supply chain pressures. As a result, we remain on track to deliver profit before tax for the full year in line with market expectations.”
BTL going green! By Nic Rotton, Sterling Commercial Finance
Nic Rotton, Commercial Mortgage Consultant at Sterling Commercial Finance, speaks on the recent green evolution of BTL.
We recently celebrated the 25th anniversary of Buy to Let and my last blog explored how it has evolved over the years.
One of the recent evolutions has been the launch of green BTL mortgages by a number of Lenders. This isn’t to suggest that the mortgage itself is eco-friendly, but it goes some way to facilitating the UK Government’s push to make our housing stock more environmentally friendly.
It is estimated that 15% of all UK emissions come from our housing and one of the Government initiatives to reduce this is the requirement for all rented houses to reach an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) rating of at least C by 2025 (existing tenancies have until 2028). The current minimum standard is an EPC of E, which would suggest a significant number of landlords will need to invest in their portfolio over the coming years in order to ensure this stock is available to rent. Without action, we risk a substantial proportion of the Private Rental Sector becoming unrentable and therefore unable to secure a mortgage or resell as a BTL.
2025 is not that far away (I can’t believe it’s less than 8 weeks to the end of 2021), and my message to landlords is to act now ahead of the rule change in 2025. There is a recognition by the mortgage industry that many landlords will need support from lenders to make these changes. In addition, upgrades aren’t normally straightforward or quick to resolve and trying to access good quality builders is already providing a challenge. I heard of one client saying his recommended builder was booked up for almost the next 12 months!
We have seen an increase in the requirement for short-term finance (bridging finance) for light and heavy refurbishment in the last 12 months in order to improve the energy efficiency of the property. Quite often, there is a significant change to be made to increase the rating to an EPC of C and above and short-term finance can be a useful solution when the property will not be lettable during the refurbishment or where funds to carry out the work are not readily available. Over recent years, we have seen the introduction of innovative and competitive products to the market, whether borrowing to refinance the loan or funding for the cost of works.
The Buy to Let market has also responded with an incentive to reward landlords who are committing to increasing the energy efficiency of their properties. Lenders such as Lendinvest, Landbay, Paragon have introduced so called Green Mortgages, offered at lower rates for properties which can show EPC ratings of C and above.
Record breaking first half for Motorpoint
Motorpoint, the Derby-headquartered vehicle retailer, has witnessed a record breaking first half.
According to unaudited interim results for the six months ended 30 September 2021 (H1 FY22), revenue increased 56.1% to £605.2m, up from £387.7m in the same period last year.
The company said this reflects record performance after reopening, continued strong consumer demand for used vehicles and strong market share gains.
Profit before tax, meanwhile, increased 39.2% to £13.5m from £9.7m, despite the business’s ongoing investment in technology, people and marketing.Mark Carpenter, Chief Executive Officer of Motorpoint Group PLC, said: “The first half of the year marked a record performance for the Group. While we have naturally benefited from favourable market conditions, we have also had to contend with unprecedented vehicle inflation and widely documented shortages in available stock which undoubtedly limited our revenue and profit growth. In the end, it is our market share gains which demonstrate the unique strengths of our model.
“During the period we continued to invest in future growth with strong progress made on our medium term strategic targets as we execute on our goal of at least doubling revenue to over £2bn in the medium term.”
West Town Pharmacy in Peterborough sold to independent owners
Specialist business property adviser, Christie & Co, has announced the sale of West Town Pharmacy in Peterborough.
West Town Pharmacy is a standard hour community pharmacy with a substantial home delivery service. It has been consistently trading for a number of years and has established a strong travel vaccine customer base. The business operates from a sizeable premises with a large, open plan sales area and has excellent potential to improve over-the-counter sales.
Well-located on the outskirts of Peterborough city centre, the pharmacy sits on a predominantly residential street, within half a mile of three GP surgeries.
West Town Pharmacy was purchased by Paydens Ltd in 2016 as part of a group acquisition and was brought to market as, geographically, it did not fit with the group’s, mainly Kent-based, portfolio. It has now been purchased husband-and-wife first-time buyers, Mr Kamal and Mrs Dharini Kadhi.
Speaking on behalf of Paydens Ltd, Director, John McConville, said, “West Town Pharmacy was not a good fit for the Paydens Group, so we decided to sell the business. We are pleased that the pharmacy will be an independent family business and wish the new owners every success.”
Mark Page, Director at Christie & Co who handled the sale, said, “This is another example of a pharmacy moving from corporate ownership into independent hands which has been commonplace in the market over the past few years. We wish Mr and Mrs Kadhi all the very best with their new venture.”
West Town Pharmacy was sold for an undisclosed price.
Council plans £26.6m property deal to provide hundreds of council homes
Plans to invest over £26million to acquire hundreds of new homes and address the growing need for affordable housing in Leicester have been announced by the city council.
Leicester City Council intends to buy 371 new properties at a cost of £26.6million.
The money will come from £100million of capital set aside by the city council to support the delivery of affordable housing in Leicester and help increase the number of homes available through the council’s housing register. This will include £10.5million from a pot of cash retained from the sale of council properties under the Government’s Right to Buy scheme.
The vast majority (366) of the properties being purchased are a mix of bedsits, studios and one-bedroom flats. The council will also buy four 2-bedroom flats and a three-bedroom house as part of the deal.
Currently, there are 6,366 households on the council’s housing register, waiting for suitable homes. Of these, over a quarter are waiting for one-bedroom accommodation, with the average waiting time between five months for those assessed as being in the highest priority people, and two years.
The Leicester & Leicestershire Housing and Economic Needs Assessment (HEDNA) 2017 concluded that the city needs a further 786 new units of affordable housing each year to meet need.
City Mayor Peter Soulsby said: “There is a desperate need for more affordable housing in the city and we are constantly looking for new ways to provide it. This major investment will significantly increase our housing stock and help address the growing need for affordable homes.
“The Government’s Right to Buy scheme means that we have been forced to sell thousands of council houses over the past 30 years. However, we can only keep half of the money raised through these sales and need to spend it within strict time limits, or we risk losing it all together. This means that it is absolutely vital that we reinvest this cash into replenishing our housing stock to help meet the desperate need for more affordable homes in the city.”
McCann selected as strategic partner for Smart Motorway Alliance
The Smart Motorway Alliance (SMA), created and operated by National Highways, has chosen its roster of contractors and partners for the framework with Nottingham-based McCann selected to work for the alliance across five packages of work.
The Smart Motorway Alliance contract was awarded in April 2021, with seven strategic partners selected to manage the framework on behalf of National Highways – including awarding works to appropriate contractors. These partners include Fluor, Jacobs, WSP, Balfour Beatty, Costain and BAM/Morgan Sindall joint venture.
Over a 10-year period, the alliance framework will be responsible for £4.5bn worth of projects across smart motorway infrastructure on behalf of the government, with work commencing in 2021. McCann has been chosen to work for the alliance across five packages covering motorway communications, road lighting, direction drilling, traffic signs, permanent CCTV systems, radar masts, MIDAS Outstation and side fire radar, ramp metering and traffic counting. It will be a Tier 1 contractor across four of the five packages it has successfully won – taking the lead on planning, budgeting and delivery. The allocation of projects to McCann is still to be determined but the value of works is estimated to be in excess of £49m per annum. News of working for the Smart Motorway Alliance aligns with the company’s three year growth plan set out at the start of 2021, which sets the target of expanding the firm by £60m – £150m by 2024. McCann’s strategic highways director, Clive Leadbetter, said: “Once again we’re delighted to be strengthening our ties to key clients and the Smart Motorway Alliance is an exciting new framework from National Highways which will deliver on key strategic objectives for the government in how we safely and efficiently maintain and upgrade our motorway network using the latest technologies. “Coupled with our SDF wins, we are perfectly placed to achieve our ambitious growth targets in the coming years and show why McCann is a major player in the successful delivery of the country’s infrastructure.”Managing Director, John McCann, said: “The Framework has been designed to encourage collaboration across our industry and we’re really looking forward to partnering with a number of firms we’re already well acquainted with such as Balfour Beatty, Costain and BAM/Morgan Sindall joint venture.
“We’re proud to be delivering once again for National Highways and to have been selected to work for the Smart Motorway Alliance. Our team brings decades of highway and motorway expertise to the framework across multiple disciplines and our track record for safe and reliable delivery speaks for itself.”Industrial unit a clean sweep for cleaning and janitorial supplies wholesaler
Hygienix Ltd, a cleaning and janitorial supplies wholesaler, has completed on a new relocation to Unit 3 Eagle Park, Alfreton Road in Derby.
The letting follows a brief marketing period which generated interest from occupiers from all over the country. The short marketing period enforces the fact that there is still high demand for industrial units in Derby.
William Speed of Salloway Property Consultants, who agreed the deal on behalf of a private client, said: “It is great to see a local company like Hygienix move onto Eagle Park, a scheme we have been involved in since the beginning.
“Eagle Park provides one of the most premium trade counter/industrial locations in Derby and consists of a variety of different occupiers. Adding Hygienix to the list of occupiers helps to boost the tenant mix on the site.”
Nick Walker from Hygienix said: “We have been looking to relocate for some time now so when this property came onto the market, we knew it was right for us. We are very excited to start a new era at Eagle Park, we recognise that it is one of the best trade counter spots in Derby and we can’t wait to make the most of it.”
William Speed added: “It is still evident that high spec industrial units are still extremely popular in Derby with more and more tenants looking for space as we come out of these uncertain times.”
Rolls-Royce delivers 1000th Trent XWB-84 engine built in Derby
Rolls-Royce announced today that it has delivered its 1000th Trent XWB–84, achieving another key milestone for the engine programme. The engine, which will power an Airbus A350-900, was built at the company’s state-of-the-art Production Test Facility in Derby, England.
The Trent XWB-84, the world’s most efficient aero engine in service, is the latest in the Trent family to reach this milestone, and has done so faster than any of its predecessors.
Following its entry into service in 2015, the Trent XWB-84, quickly became the fastest selling large engine of all time. It has now achieved more than eight million engine flying hours in service with more than 30 operators, demonstrating its versatility and capability by flying a range of different routes, from short-range segments to ultra-long-range flights of more than 18 hours.
Enabling our airline customers to build more efficient fleets, the Trent XWB-84 has a 15 per cent fuel consumption advantage over the first Trent engine, goes further on less fuel, and offers leading performance and noise levels. It is also ready to operate on Sustainable Aviation Fuels as they become more available to airlines in the future. In addition, the Trent XWB-84 has contributed to avoiding more than 10 million tonnes of CO2 since it launched in 2015 – that’s the same amount of CO2 it takes to provide electricity to nearly two million homes each year.
As well as offering improved efficiency, the Trent XWB-84 delivers a step change in maturity and reliability for the industry, consistently achieving better than 99.9% dispatch reliability.
Chris Cholerton, President Rolls-Royce Civil Aerospace, said: “Reaching this milestone is another great achievement for the Trent XWB-84, which is the most efficient aero engine in service. It is important to our customers to build ever more efficient fleets, and new-generation engines, like the Trent XWB-84 allow them to achieve this. We would like to thank everyone, including our customers, employees, partners and suppliers who have helped create the engine programme’s success.”
Sebastian Resch, Director of Operations Civil Aerospace, Rolls-Royce, said: “We take great pride in our state-of-the-art assembly line in Derby – where our highly-skilled colleagues have accumulated more than 7,500 years of assembly experience. To assemble 1000 Trent XWB-84s has required more than 25 million parts brought together and more than 6,000 assembly steps per engine. This achievement is the result of the skills and dedication of our operations teams, with the strong support of our partners in the programme: GKN Aerospace, ITP Aero, Kawasaki Heavy Industries and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, as well as our external supply chain.”
Manufacturing orders strongest on record, but supply issues continue to bite
UK manufacturing total order books in November improved to their strongest on record (since 1977), according to the latest monthly CBI Industrial Trends Survey.
The survey of 282 manufacturers also saw export order books at their strongest since March 2019.
Output growth in the three months to November remained firm, increasing at a similarly above-average pace to October and September 2021. 12 out of 17 sectors saw output increase, with headline growth being driven largely by the food, drink & tobacco, electronic engineering, and chemicals sub-sectors. Manufacturers expect output growth to accelerate in the next three months.
Stock adequacy for finished goods worsened to its weakest on record (since April 1977). Meanwhile, expectations for output price growth in the coming quarter were at their strongest since May 1977.
Anna Leach, CBI deputy chief economist, said: “It’s good to see strong order books and output growth in the manufacturing sector holding up as we head into winter. Output growth has been steady for three months now and remains quicker than its long-run average.
“But intense supply side challenges continue to put pressure on firms’ capacity to meet demand. Alongside record order books, stock adequacy was the weakest on record in November and manufacturers are increasingly having to pass on significant cost increases to customers.
“These pressures highlight that the Government was right to establish the supply chain taskforce to address acute challenges. But with these challenges likely to persist into the new year, business is ready to work with the Government to adopt a more holistic, cross-economy approach to identifying solutions which support the entire supply chain.”
Tom Crotty, group director at INEOS and chair of the CBI Manufacturing Council, said: “It is promising that manufacturing total order books have improved to their strongest on record, with output growth seen across the majority of sub-sectors.
“However, cost pressures continue to mount amid ongoing global supply chain difficulties. It is essential that government continues to support manufacturers as we head towards the winter months. Only by working with business can they build back better post-pandemic.”
Brick sales volumes up at Forterra
Forterra, the Northamptonshire-based producer of manufactured masonry products, has hailed a strong trading performance in the four months ended 31 October 2021, with brick sales volumes up 6% vs 2019.
The business is expecting to deliver a 2021 result in line with management’s expectations.
In a trading update the company added that significant cost inflation was being experienced across a range of categories including energy, raw materials and transportation.
It noted that to recover cost inflation, concrete product selling price increases have already been achieved with significant brick price increases secured from 1 January 2022.
Stephen Harrison, Chief Executive of Forterra plc, said: “The strong trading seen in the both the housebuilding and repair maintenance and improvement (RM&I) markets in first half of the year continued into the second half. As expected, we encountered significant pressures across our supply chain in the period, although, due to the agility of our operational management, we have been successful in limiting any disruption.
“We also experienced meaningful input cost inflation, which has had a short-term impact on margins, however we are mitigating this through significant selling price increases. Notwithstanding these factors, we continue to anticipate delivering a full year result in line with management’s expectations, with higher than expected revenues offsetting the increased cost base.
“Heading into 2022 we are optimistic about the continuing buoyant demand for our products, underpinned by favourable market fundamentals. With the brick capacity uplift provided by the new Desford brick factory now only a year away, and with the Wilnecote project increasing our presence in the commercial and specification market from 2023, we are confident that group performance will continue to strengthen.”
PKF Smith Cooper Systems acquires Sci-Net Sage Business
Derby-based PKF Smith Cooper Systems has acquired Sci-Net’s Sage Business Systems Division.
Based in Oxfordshire, Sci-Net Business Solutions’ core business is as a Tier 1 Microsoft
Dynamics & Azure Gold Partner. However, they have also provided Sage solutions and
enjoyed great long term relationships for many years with their loyal group of Sage 200 clients.
Chris Smith, MD of PKF Smith Cooper Systems, said: “The acquisition of Sci-Net’s Sage Division is another positive and sensible step forward for our business. The Sci-net team has done a great job in looking after their Sage clients over the years, but with the ever evolving world of Sage 200 and Sci-net’s increased focus on Microsoft solutions, it is great timing for the clients to benefit from the wider Sage 200 experience of the Smith Cooper team.
“We are excited to work with our new clients and help them move their Sage systems to the next level. We also welcome David Gruby to our company as part of the transaction, who brings many years of Sage 200 experience to our support team.”
Sci-Net commercial and operations director, Kye Souter, said: “We are really pleased with this deal which will allow us to focus fully on our core Microsoft offerings. However, we are also very happy that, in Chris Smith and the team at PKF Smith Cooper Systems, we have found a good home for our loyal Sage clients, most of whom we have worked with for many years.”
PKF Smith Cooper Systems thanked Kye Souter, Duncan Fergusson, and the senior team at Sci-Net, as well as Flint Bishop LLP for their professional assistance in moving this transaction to completion.
PKF Smith Cooper Systems are Sage Business Partners and experts with Sage 200 & Sage Intacct.
