GMI Construction Group, a fast-expanding building and construction services company has announced the award of a major new contract to construct a 118,000 sq. ft state of the art manufacturing plant for Aflex Hose on a 11.6-acre site at Bradley Business Park in Huddersfield, close to the M62 Aflex Hose specialise in the design and manufacture of PTFE-lined flexible hoses for the pharmaceutical, food, chemical and automotive industries. The company currently operates from five separate manufacturing, office and product development facilities across Yorkshire which they intend to consolidate under one roof. The development which will include investment in new extrusion lines and processing equipment, is set to boost production capacity by 70%.  Aflex expects that up to 200 new jobs will be created as a result of the new development over the next 10 years. Construction of the new factory which began at the start of February was recently marked by an official ground-breaking ceremony onsite attended by representatives from Aflex and GMI, together with local dignitaries and key project stakeholders. Speaking about the announcement and new factory plans, Aflex Hose UK Project Director Jeremy Hudson said: “After many months of planning and consultation we are delighted to now be onsite and commence construction of this fantastic new state of the art facility. We have given GMI an ambitious build programme and hope to begin consolidating our existing production facilities into the new factory by the spring of 2020. This project constitutes a significant investment for Aflex and their corporate owners Watson-Marlow (A Spirax-Sarco Engineering Company). When fully up and running, the new site will allow us to achieve our ambitions, demonstrating our commitment to customers worldwide, and to our workforce, thus ensuring that as we continue to grow as a company we will continue to manufacture world leading PTFE lined flexible hoses to the highest standard.” Also commenting, Andy Bruce, GMI Group Managing Director said: “We are very pleased to have been awarded this contract by Aflex Hose and be trusted to deliver this important new state-of-the-art manufacturing plant. The design teams have worked closely with Aflex Hose to design a facility that accommodates the bespoke nature of their manufacturing requirements now and in future – thus securing additional capacity requirements going forward and the potential addition of new product lines. The build programme has been carefully designed to minimise disruption to local residents and we are committed to an open-door relationship with the residents and neighbouring businesses”. Now in its 33rd year, GMI has considerable experience and a solid track record of delivering building and construction excellence across an extensive range of sectors, for a growing international portfolio of clients, from blue chip companies to public sector clients and private developers. Throughout the past 12 months, GMI has completed projects valued at in excess of £100 million and worked on some of the UK’s most profile developments including: The Springs, Thorpe Park Leeds and Follingsby Max in Gateshead.