ROUND-UP MAY 2019
In Brief
Business
Brick output set to double
Leading brick and building
products manufacturer Forterra
has announced that it is set to
commence a £95m project to
double production at its plant
in Desford, near Leicester. The
investment will turn the site into
the largest and most efficient
brick factory in Europe, with
output set to more than double
to 180 million bricks per year –
enough to build 24,000 homes.
TopHat
£75m for housing start-up
TopHat, the UK’s leader in
technology-driven modular
housing manufacturing, has
announced a £75m capital
investment by Goldman Sachs,
which will help expand the
business further. Founded in
early 2016, TopHat commenced
production at its manufacturing
facility in South Derbyshire
(above) in early 2018.
100 new jobs at adi Group
Birmingham engineering firm,
adi Group, has announced the
construction of a new factory
in Rushden, Northamptonshire,
that will create up to 100 jobs.
The Birmingham-based company
looked at several sites before
finally selecting Rushden as host
to a key element of its ambitious
growth and job creation plans,
due to its proximity to a number
of the firm’s current and future
key clients. The new factory will
bolster partnerships adi Group
enjoys in a wide range of sectors.
Durham firm wins
Google contract
Durham-based lighting
manufacturer Artech
Lighting has secured a
lucrative deal to supply
the lighting package on
Google’s prestigious
‘DeepMind’ project at
its newly developed,
state-of-the-art £1bn
London HQ.
The firm is supplying
over 1,750 fixtures and
fittings to the scheme,
which helped create a
new sales position and
four new manufacturing
roles at its factory on
the outskirts of Durham.
“Google is a global
blue-chip brand and
the DeepMind project
represents one of its
most significant
investments outside of
the US, so it was vital
that we developed a
solution that met the
demands and
requirements of the
project,” said Artech
managing director,
Stuart Hylton. “It’s a
huge win for us, as we
secured this work from
under the noses of
major established
worldwide brands in
the lighting industry.”
DeepMind is the
world-leader in artificial
intelligence research
and its application in
everyday life. Pushing
the boundaries of AI,
DeepMind is developing
software that can learn
to solve complex
problems without
needing to be taught
how to do so.
If successful, the
initiative will be one of
the most important
scientific advances in
history, helping tackle
everything from climate
change to healthcare.
People
A third of businesses say
that Brexit is affecting their
headcount, according to a
survey conducted by Subcon.
A similar number (30%) have
put European expansion plans
on hold, although over half
(55%) say they are correctly
structured to navigate the
UK’s exit from the EU.
Energy
New reporting legislation
All large companies in the UK
are now obliged to include
detailed carbon emissions and
energy usage figures in their
director’s reports under new
legislation. The Streamlined
Energy and Carbon Reporting
(SECR), came into force
in April. It replaces the
existing Carbon Reduction
Commitment Energy
Efficiency Scheme (CRC).
Salaries for new roles in
the manufacturing sector
increased by an average of
1.6% to £30,918 in the first
quarter of 2019, according to
CV-Library. Despite this, the
number of people applying
for roles in the sector fell by
11%, and the number of jobs
advertised fell by around 1%.
Act now on energy savings
New research from Inenco has
found that the manufacturing
sector has the greatest
potential for energy savings,
yet many organisations are
failing to act on opportunities
to cut cost and carbon. While
60% of the UK’s potential
energy savings can be
attributed to industry, only
50% of manufacturers have
actively cut their energy usage.
Hot topic
According to a survey by Subcon, 56% of
UK manufacturing firms think that no more
needs to be done to attract females into
the industry – despite women making
up just 24% of those in the sector.
Training & Skills
Tech Institutes named
Education Secretary Damian
Hinds has announced the
location of 12 Institutes of
Technology (IoTs), which will
be set up across the country
to boost young people’s
skills. The Institutes will
be unique collaborations
between universities, Further
Education colleges and leading
employers including Nissan,
Siemens and Microsoft.
MTC pupils ready for work
Coventry’s Manufacturing
Technology Centre (MTC) is
looking for partner employers
to take advantage of the
centre’s highly-acclaimed
apprentice training scheme
by employing a work-ready
apprentice. Thirty-four
apprentices are available
for placement immediately,
having completed 18 months
of their training.
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