According to the latest report from Moneypenny, the telephone answering service, British builders are missing out on work because of their failure to answer their phone calls. The study showed that 33% of builders in Britain are letting the calls go through to voicemail or ringing out, while 41% of
Newton Aycliffe-based CVO Fire has secured a six-figure investment from UK Steel Enterprise to support a management buyout. Now headed by Directors Paul Stocks and Michelle Bailey, the fireplace company says it is now embarking on plans to grow its customer base, workforce and showroom network. The business’ burner developed
Building work is underway on the new £32 million West Calder High School. The new school will be home to 1,000 pupils and is set to open in 2018. It will include a floodlit 3G sports pitch, a swimming pool and sports facilities to be used by both the school
Sheffield interiors company, Wisewood Interiors, has shut down after being hit hard by a bad debt. The firm was established in 2010 and serviced construction contracts throughout the UK for major supermarkets. Managing Director Andrew Hartley established the company as a provider of drylining, suspended ceilings and partitions and had
Uxbridge based construction firm Galliford Try has been appointed to Dandara Group’s £40 million private rental sector apartment project on the Arena Central site in central Birmingham. The contractor will build 323 apartments for private rent across two new 17 and 22-storey blocks. The development is part of a wider
Plans for an advanced manufacturing training hub in Shropshire have been announced, with the aim of supporting ‘2020 learners by 2020’. The Marches Centre of Manufacturing & Technology (MCMT), which is led by a consortium of Classic Motor Cars, Grainger & Worrall, Salop Design & Engineering and training provider In-Comm,
Santander Corporate & Commercial has financed around £2 million in growth capital funding and working capital facilities to Cardiff, Wales based Forward Waste Management (FWM). The Welsh waste and recycling firm, which offers services specifically for the manufacturing sector, will use the funding to help develop its regional waste collection
23 May 2016 | James Richards Security, cleaning and environmental protection service provider Kingdom has announced that its contract with Drax Power Station in North Yorkshire has been extended for a further five years. According to a statement released today, Kingdom won the renewal at Drax, the UK’s largest power
Norway’s $860bn oil fund will no longer put money into 52 companies for being too reliant on coal in one of the biggest ever fossil fuel-related divestment by a single investor. The world’s biggest sovereign wealth fund is no longer able to invest in a number of companies including Drax
ashleySavills is celebrating its 20th anniversary in Manchester after first opening its doors in the city in 1996. From an initial team of three, comprising Mark Ridley who is now CEO Savills UK & Europe and senior directors Peter Mallinder and Patrick Joynson, staff numbers have increased to more than
According to the latest report from Moneypenny, the telephone answering service, British builders are missing out on work because of their failure to answer their phone calls. The study showed that 33% of builders in Britain are letting the calls go through to voicemail or ringing out, while 41% of building contractors did not answer the phone, according to the Small Business Call Report 2016, which also showed that most callers (69%) refuse to leave a voicemail message. Moneypenny has warned that this can have a huge negative impact on their revenue, as the value of each missed call having a significant impact on its bottom line, in particular in the current economic climate. Co-founder and Director of Moneypenny, Ed Reeves, commented: “Quite simply, a customer getting through to a voicemail instead of a person is like tearing up money. It’s akin to walking into a shop with no one at the till. Buyers simply ring the next supplier on the list. “Pretty much every prospective customer hangs up at an answer message, yet so many businesses, especially those run from mobiles, have no solution in place. UK SMEs are losing a fortune in business opportunities, and our dependency on operating our business from our mobiles is making things worse.” The study shows that those who let their calls go through to voicemail are also letting themselves down with their message greeting. More than half (54%) of micro businesses are still relying on a standard network voicemail greeting without making reference to their business. 300 micro businesses (with 0-9 employees) took part in the survey, which includes building contractors and construction workers, and an examination of Moneypenny’s own call data from 10,000 businesses. Reeves added: “Customers use phone enquiries differently nowadays; a phone call is no longer a research tool – that’s handled by social media, websites or email – instead it’s the final reassurance prior to a purchase.”
Newton Aycliffe-based CVO Fire has secured a six-figure investment from UK Steel Enterprise to support a management buyout. Now headed by Directors Paul Stocks and Michelle Bailey, the fireplace company says it is now embarking on plans to grow its customer base, workforce and showroom network. The business’ burner developed and patented technology, which is hand-built in County Durham, allows customers to have a gas fire without needing a chimney or a catalytic convertor. The UK Steel Enterprise investment came from the Tata Steel business support-subsidiary’s Equity Growth Scheme, backed by the government’s Regional Growth Fund. Paul Stocks said: “Our buy-out and expansion plans would have been very difficult to achieve without this investment and backing from UK Steel Enterprise. We looked at a number of funding sources but UKSE was the best option for us. “We are already creating at least two additional sales posts early in the New Year and expect additional production and other jobs to follow. “We have a really committed production team here and they are currently working flat-out to complete pre-Christmas orders. Our order book is also looking very healthy well into 2017.” Michelle Bailey added: “We are planning to develop our network of UK dealers and our European market and open two more of our own FireVault showrooms in London and the Midlands.“ Sarah Thorpe of investor UK Steel Enterprise commented: “We were introduced to the company by Sam Condren of accountants Barkley Jonson and have also been working alongside the company’s other advisers Angus Allan at Clive Owen & Co and Nik Tunley of Endeavour Partnership. “It has been another example of successful teamwork that has resulted in a business with real potential getting the support and investment it needs to exploit its opportunities and create valuable jobs.“
Building work is underway on the new £32 million West Calder High School. The new school will be home to 1,000 pupils and is set to open in 2018. It will include a floodlit 3G sports pitch, a swimming pool and sports facilities to be used by both the school and wider community. Pupils joined Cathy Muldoon, the council deputy leader, along with education executive vice chairman David Dodds at the site to mark the occasion. Representatives from Hub South East, West Lothian Council and builders Morrison Construction were also in attendance. Cllr Muldoon commented: “It’s fantastic to see work start on the new West Calder High School, with a good deal of activity now taking place to get the site ready for construction. “We are investing over £100 million in education infrastructure projects to ensure West Lothian children have the best possible learning environment. West Lothian already has one of the best school estates in the country and our ongoing investment will build on this.” Plans for the £32 million school were officially approved in June, which is West Lothian Council’s largest ever single investment in education. It was developed through Hub South East Scotland, with Morrison Construction appointed to build the new school. Councillor Fitzpatrick said: “I’m delighted to see the project to deliver the new £32 million West Calder High School, the council’s largest ever investment in education, is progressing well. “The modern, high-quality school will be a fantastic resource for local young people, providing an ideal learning environment for them to achieve their full potential. “This investment will help ensure that West Lothian continues to have one of the best school estates in Scotland. “The construction work phase will also provide valuable training and job opportunities for local residents. “At its peak, 70-100 people will be employed on site, with up to an additional 10 full-time positions being created.”
Sheffield interiors company, Wisewood Interiors, has shut down after being hit hard by a bad debt. The firm was established in 2010 and serviced construction contracts throughout the UK for major supermarkets. Managing Director Andrew Hartley established the company as a provider of drylining, suspended ceilings and partitions and had enjoyed success in securing contracts with national retailers such as The Co-Op, Tesco, Lidl and Aldi. However, Lisa Hogg and Kelly Burton of Sheffield business turnaround experts Wilson Field, were appointed as joint administrators on November 21. They advised that the best course of action was to close down the six year old business, based on Wisewood Road in Sheffield, with all seven jobs set to be lost. Director and Insolvency Practitioner at Wilson Field, Kelly Burton commented: “Historically, the company offered its services to a range of retailers but suffered from a sizeable bad debt. “The director took advice from Wilson Field with the business being forced to close.” Operating on a national basis and based in Sheffield, Wisewood Interiors was established to provide a competitive suspended ceiling service to private customers and main contractors, with an emphasis on reliability and quality. The company soon expanded to cover extra core activities. Among these were all interior drywall systems, together with traditional hand applied and machine applied projection plaster and render systems. Meanwhile, a campaign to save Sheffield’s derelict Old Town Hall and Courtrooms has been given a funding boost. Friends of the Old Town Hall campaigned for two years to save and restore the Grade II-listed Waingate building, which has been on and off the property market. The group has been awarded £7,700 Lottery funding to set up a charitable trust and help preserve the building. Chairperson Valerie Bayliss said Sheffield’s origins were on that site. Ms Bayliss said: “The original settlement was down by the confluence of the Rivers Don and Sheaf, with the castle from the 13th to the 17th centuries. “Old maps show Sheffield began in this patch and spread out over the centuries.”
Uxbridge based construction firm Galliford Try has been appointed to Dandara Group’s £40 million private rental sector apartment project on the Arena Central site in central Birmingham. The contractor will build 323 apartments for private rent across two new 17 and 22-storey blocks. The development is part of a wider regeneration of the area and will sit next to the Alpha Tower, adjacent to Holliday Street. Galliford Try is already on site at Arena Central, constructing the 220,000 sq ft office building for bank HSBC, and the new contract builds on its presence in Birmingham, with construction also progressing at the new Conservatoire for Birmingham City University at Millennium Point. Managing director for Galliford Try Building West Midlands, Simon Burton, commented: “It is great news that we have been able to conclude a contract with Dandara for this prestigious new development. “The PRS sector is seen by many in the industry to have potential for real growth, and we are delighted to have our strong track record of providing high-quality housing recognised in this way.” Sean O’Connor, Dandara’s project director, added: “This project will create numerous local employment opportunities and we look forward to working with Galliford Try to deliver these 323 high quality PRS apartments in the city centre.” The Birmingham project is part of an estimated £400 million investment by Dandara in PRS, which includes also includes schemes in Leeds and Manchester. Last month Galliford Try won a £44 million contract for a retirement village in Bedford. The new £44m village will feature 230 mixed-tenure apartments, alongside a range of communal facilities, including a village hall, library and IT suite, bar and bistro, fitness gym, hairdressing and beauty salon and shop. The development marks the tenth occasion that Partnerships has worked with the charity on a retirement village, with new projects at Longbridge, Stoke Gifford and High Wycombe currently on site.
Plans for an advanced manufacturing training hub in Shropshire have been announced, with the aim of supporting ‘2020 learners by 2020’. The Marches Centre of Manufacturing & Technology (MCMT), which is led by a consortium of Classic Motor Cars, Grainger & Worrall, Salop Design & Engineering and training provider In-Comm, will provide a “high-tech environment for individuals to learn from engineering experts on the latest technology”, which will involve working on real life manufacturing situations. Supported by the Marches Local Enterprise Partnership, work will start on fitting out the 36,000 sq ft building on the Stanmore Industrial Estate in January 2017, with plans in place to create dedicated fabrication, foundry, lathe, metrology, milling, robotics and vehicle trimming sections, as well as a specialist CNC Zone and spray booth/mixing capabilities. There will also be an auditorium lecture theatre, bespoke learning environments, five vehicle ramps and a rolling road test facility. It will look to support 2020 learners between now and 2020 and this will largely involve developing apprentices in advanced manufacturing and engineering, giving employers a strong pool of skills to tap into as they continue to compete globally. In addition to this, there will also be capacity to work with 400 companies on developing existing manufacturing professionals up to Level 7 qualifications, covering business improvement techniques, team leadership, vehicle body repair and paint, vehicle body building, technical development, quality and continuous improvement. Matthew Snelson, director of Grainger & Worrall and managing director of the MCMT, said: “We believe the MCMT is critical to closing the skills gap for Shropshire businesses, but we are under no illusions that we will need the rest of local industry, education and training to play their part. This could be through informing how the provision develops, using the services and even offering time and expertise to help with delivering some of the learning.”
Santander Corporate & Commercial has financed around £2 million in growth capital funding and working capital facilities to Cardiff, Wales based Forward Waste Management (FWM). The Welsh waste and recycling firm, which offers services specifically for the manufacturing sector, will use the funding to help develop its regional waste collection and processing facilities extending from South Wales to the West Midlands. Established in 2006, FWM provides an end-to-end service to UK manufacturers, including the management of hazardous waste materials. With a substantial increase in environmental regulation over the past decade, FWM said that it has expanded significantly as the demands on its clients have grownenabling it to capitalise by advising clients on their total waste management strategy via a single point of contact. The firm’s current clients include British Airways, Ricardo, Federal Mogul, Sony and Actavis. The Growth Capital funding from Santander is being used in particular to fund FWM’s operations in the West Midlands as the business develops a growing customer base in the region. Santander’s Growth Capital loans are targeted at businesses with annual turnovers of up to £50 million which have a demonstrated history of high year-on-year growth in turnover, profit or employment. The facility is part of the bank’s Breakthrough support programme, which is aimed at fast-growth, ambitious businesses and includes funded overseas trade missions, Masterclass events and also provides graduate interns to SMEs. FWM added said that it also incorporates its own waste handling equipment division, Enviroquip, manufacturing and refurbishing a wide range of machinery including waste compactors, balers and containers. Lyndon Ward, managing director of Forward Waste Management Ltd, said: “We are a dynamic business operating in growth driven by the increasingly significant waste and recycling regulatory and compliance requirements for our customer base.” Peter Abel, Director, Growth Capital, Santander Corporate & Commercial added: “This is a business we have known and tracked for a while…. They operate in a sector with exciting opportunities.”
23 May 2016 | James Richards Security, cleaning and environmental protection service provider Kingdom has announced that its contract with Drax Power Station in North Yorkshire has been extended for a further five years. According to a statement released today, Kingdom won the renewal at Drax, the UK’s largest power station, after “a challenging tender process”. The firm has been providing security to Drax Power Station since 2011, with guarding, CCTV and mobile services. Martin Sloan, group head of security at Drax Power, said he was not surprised that Kingdom was successful in extending its contract. He added that the renewal has delivered “additional stability and helped to reinvigorate the entire team”. According to the company’s statement, its personnel at the site undertake a range of high-risk security services, such as protester management and business continuity planning. Source link
Norway’s $860bn oil fund will no longer put money into 52 companies for being too reliant on coal in one of the biggest ever fossil fuel-related divestment by a single investor. The world’s biggest sovereign wealth fund is no longer able to invest in a number of companies including Drax in the UK, AES, Dynegy and FirstEnergy in the US, Reliance Power and Tata Power in India, and a string of Chinese groups. More On this topic IN Investment Strategy The move comes four months after a landmark global agreement on climate change in Paris and highlights how seriously investors are now taking the debate on fossil fuels and potential stranded assets. The Norwegian fund’s decision is all the more striking because it derives its funding from petroleum revenues. Norway’s parliament last year ordered the oil fund to sell out of companies in which more than 30 per cent of revenues or activities are derived from coal. The oil fund said it had already sold out of 28 of the 52 companies last year as part of risk-based divestments. The oil fund on Thursday warned that “several more” rounds of exclusions would follow this year as it analysed all of its nearly 10,000 holdings. It added that it had written letters to 50 affected companies and only received five replies. “We expected more replies than that,” a spokeswoman said. The latest decisions almost double the number of companies the oil fund is not allowed to invest in. Previous exclusions have included tobacco companies, nuclear weapons producers, and individual cases such as Walmart for serious violations of human rights. The oil fund has long been seen as one of the pioneers of responsible or ethical investing and it has stepped up its work in recent years. It now plays a more active role in the selection of board directors in many European countries and has begun to publish some of its voting intentions ahead of annual meetings, instead of just disclosing its votes afterwards. But its most visible symbol of responsible investing remains exclusions, as dictated by its owner, the Norwegian people via the local parliament. Among the exclusions on Thursday was Peabody Energy, the coal miner that this week filed for bankruptcy protection. Other exclusions include: China Coal Energy, China Power International Development, China Resources Power Holdings, China Shenhua Energy, Datang International Power Generation, and Yanzhou Coal Mining. Exxaro Resources from South Africa, Coal India and Gujarat Mineral Development from India, Hokkaido and Okinawa Electric Power from Japan, New Hope and Whitehaven Coal in Australia were also excluded. Norway’s parliament considered whether to stop investing in all fossil fuel companies — including oil and gas producers — but decided against it. Some opposition parties have called for it to ban investments in tax havens following the release of the Panama Papers. Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2016. You may share using our article tools. Please don’t cut articles from FT.com and redistribute by email or post to the web. Source link
ashleySavills is celebrating its 20th anniversary in Manchester after first opening its doors in the city in 1996. From an initial team of three, comprising Mark Ridley who is now CEO Savills UK & Europe and senior directors Peter Mallinder and Patrick Joynson, staff numbers have increased to more than 200 making Manchester the firm’s biggest office outside of London. James Evans, head of Savills Manchester, comments: “Just as Manchester has evolved significantly over the last 20 years, Savills has grown and prospered within the city. The scale of the commercial and residential property markets within the city region have accelerated dramatically over this time period and we are proud of the fact we have been able to grow our service provision in response to the ever-changing needs of our clients. However, despite our growth in head count I am also proud that we have been able to retain our unique culture and continue to ensure Savills is a fun business to be part of.” Over the last two decades, Manchester has changed dramatically and firmly established its profile on a global level. When Savills opened in the city in 1996, ownership of prime offices was dominated by UK funds and local property companies such as P&O Properties, Bruntwood, CWS and the Greater Manchester Pension Fund. Today, such has been the growth and appeal of the region that the landlord base is made up of a diverse blend of investors from across the globe. For example, Germany’s Union Investment Real Estate recently purchased XYZ in Spinningfields while German fund Deka acquired One St Peter’s Square. Peter Mallinder, investment director at Savills, comments: “The quality of buildings, maturity of the market and availability of truly prime stock means Manchester now competes on an international scale. Just as the investment market has flourished over the last 20 years, the occupational market, whether it be retail, offices or industrial, has also grown and become much more sophisticated.” Manchester’s office market has undergone significant change. Demand from occupiers comes not just from a diverse base of sectors with a notable spike within the ever maturing TMT sector but also from global businesses who recognise the benefits of the city’s economy and its attributes. The wider offer now consists of a burgeoning leisure sector and an ever growing city centre residential market that has grown exponentially over the last decade. Savills Manchester now has an established, multi-service offer including investment agency; office and industrial agency; retail and leisure agency; building and project consultancy; property management; hotels agency and valuation; valuation; residential and planning. The firm also has three residential offices in the North West (Chester, Wilmslow and Clitheroe.) Source link