COACHING Banashing long hoursEXPORT Looking beyondEuropeGERMANYMaking linkswww.blmgroup.co.ukWWW.EASTMIDLANDSBUSINESSLINK.CO.UKFEBRUARY 2015EAST MIDLANDS LEADING BUSINESS E-MAGCOMMERCIAL PROPERTYIs the East Midlands bouncing back?COMMERCIAL PROPERTYIs the East Midlands bouncing back? We’re the experts.www.demystifythecloud.co.uk @demystifycloud info@demystifythecloud.co.uk Want to move to the cloud?demystifyworking in the cloudWant to move Want to move Want to move Want to move Want to move to the cloud? to the cloud? to the cloud? to the cloud? to the cloud? dem demystifyfystify y e’re the experts. e’re the experts.dem demystifyfystify y W e’re the experts.W e’re the experts. e’re the experts. e’re the experts. www.demystifythecloud.co.uk@demystifycloudinfo@demystifythecloud.co.uk www.demystifythecloud.co.uk@demystifycloudinfo@demystifythecloud.co.uk www.demystifythecloud.co.ukinfo@demystifythecloud.co.uk EDITOR’S NOTESwww.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk East Midlands Business Link 3As we go to press, the Eurozone remains convulsed by flat growth and recession. The newlyincumbent Syriza government in Greece has been voted in on a wave of anti-austerity fervour,whilst Angela Merkel’s plan for austerity looks increasingly shaky.Where does this leave companies in our region who are looking to trade with Europeanpartners? In this issue, we feature a round table debate sponsored by Nottingham MeansBusiness that examines the city’s links with Germany (one of Invest in Nottingham’s key targetmarkets) and asks whether enough is being done to strengthen and promote trade in thecountry – traditionally the powerhouse of the European economy. The debate makesfascinating reading.This month we also look forward to the annual MIPIM shindig in Cannes, France, andexamine how the East Midlands office market is seeing unparalleled levels of demand fromboth tenants – and investors looking to pick up a prime piece of city centre real estate. Levelsfor both are running at record highs, and the future looks rosy for the sector – if only someonewould be prepared to stick a spade in the ground and build some new stock, eh?Lastly, February sees the Awards Evening for our East Midlands Fastest 40. The event, onthe evening of 26th February, will be held at Hotel Maiyango in Leicester and has long sincesold out. We’ll have all the winners and photos from what should be a fantastic event. Goodluck if you’ve been shortlisted.Sam MetcalfEditorThe ties thatbindContentsFebruary 2015Latest News 6The latest news from the regionManufacturing News 8News and views from around the East MidlandsAppointments10Who’s moving where Deals News12The latest news from the dealmakers around the regionProperty News 14All the latest from the property sectorCommercial Property 16Investment in the UK commercial property sector totaled£20.5bn in the final quarter of 2014 – a 26% increase onthe previous quarter and the highest quarterlyperformance on record – according to new researchpublished by national commercial property consultancyLambert Smith Hampton (LSH). • Innes EnglandRound Table28How can Nottingham improve its trade links withGermany? In a special round table sponsored byNottingham Means Business, our specially invited panelgave their thoughts.Export22With the continuing strife in the Eurozone hamperingtrade, where can growing East Midlands companies lookto export their goods or services. We found out..Workplace Stress 23Vicky Bailey of Delphinius TMC looks at one of the biggestissues that could be happening in your business, quietly inthe background; almost without anyone’s knowledge; untila crisis brings it to the surface.Coaching 26Working long hours does not lead to high growth byStuart Ross, High Growth.Connectivity28The connectivity tips SMBs can’t afford to miss by NeilArmstrong, director of business services, Timico.Business Plan30How to increase your profits without just cutting costs byJames Pinchbeck, Marketing Partner Streets CharteredAccountantsOwner Managed Business 33The Nottingham branch of Allied Irish Bank (AIB) has muchto look forward to in 2015. After 25 years at Byron Houseon Maid Marian Way, the team are relocating toprestigious new offices within Park View House on TheRopewalk.Dress Down Friday 34The lighter side of East Midlands office lifeAutoLink36During the winter the car world is often split betweenthose of us who can keep the wheels of industry turningand those that can’t. So what are the best cars to keepyour business moving in the right direction this winter?Out of Office38All the leisure sector news from the last month434East Midlands Business Link www.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk4024EditorSam Metcalfs.metcalf@blmgroup.co.ukAdvertisingLisa Muckle l.muckle@blmgroup.co.ukAccounts & SubscriptionsAngela Sharman, Dawn Cookaccounts@blmgroup.co.ukTel: (01472) 310301 Fax: (01472) 310311Design & ProductionGary Jorgensen, Mark Casson,Rachel Greenstudio@blmgroup.co.ukTel: (01472) 310304Fax: (01472) 310314E-Mail:eastmidlands@blmgroup.co.ukPublisherHaychart Ltd, t/a Business Link Magazine Group,Armstrong House, Armstrong Street, Grimsby, N.E. Lincs., DN31 2QE.All rights reserved. No part of this publicationmay be reproduced, transmitted, photocopied,recorded or otherwise without expresspermission of the copyright holder, for whichapplication should be addressed first to thepublisher. While every reasonable care is taken,neither the publisher nor its participating agentsaccept liability for loss or damage to prints,colour transparencies, negatives or othermaterial of whatever nature submitted to thispublication. The views expressed in thispublication are not necessarily the views of thoseheld by the publisher.@BLMEastMidlandsBLMEastMidlands5www.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk East MidlandsBusiness Link East Midlands Business Link www.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk6Octavian tocreate over 500jobs in SouthAfricaOctavian Security, the Nottingham-based security firm, has kicked off its 2015growth plans by launching a new SouthAfrican office. The move will see thecompany create 15 head office jobs andover 500 security personnel positions.Cornelius Muyunda, Octavian’s newdirector of Africa, will be heading up thenew office. He said: “South Africa is avery exciting new market for Octavian andis a country which faces a number ofsecurity challenges in terms of crime andterrorist threats. South Africa is one of themost at risk countries across Africa, so wehave worked hard to develop specificofferings and skill sets to meet theseneeds.“By creating hundreds of jobs,diversifying the market and providingexceptional services for some of thecountry’s biggest names – the opening ofthis new office is not only a positive movefor Octavian, but for the South Africansecurity market as a whole.”Sukhi Ghuman, CEO and founder ofOctavian Security, added: “Octavian’sexpansion into South Africa is a realindication of our global reputation and thehigh regard with which the company andits services are held. The South Africanmarket has its own unique challenges, butour vast amount of expertise andexperience is sure to make this latestexpansion a great success for allinvolved.”Octavian will be providing mannedsecurity, consultancy and training servicesfor corporate businesses and specificofferings for the mining industry in SouthAfrica.Chamber welcomes jobs news - butwarns on skills The latest job figures inthe East Midlands showedsignificant annual falls in thenumber of people claimingout of work benefits and thetotal number of unemployedpeople across the region,along with a large annualincrease in employment.In Derby and Derbyshire,there were 491 fewerJobseekers’ Allowance(JSA) claimants inDecember than there werein November, representingan annual fall of 5,517, or 36per cent.Nottingham and Nottinghamshire saw a monthly fall in claimants of 469 and an annual fall of 6,642(28 per cent).In Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland, there were 527 fewer claimants in December thanNovember, and 5,924 (36 per cent) fewer than in December 2013. Across the East Midlands, the total number of people in employment increased by 11,709 in thethree months to November, an increase of 49,750 on the same period in 2013.The total number of unemployed between September and November increased by 603, but wasdown by 19,094 on the year.The East Midlands Chamber, which represents businesses in Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire andLeicestershire, has welcomed the news, but says firms are still struggling to recruit skilled staff.Chris Hobson, the Chamber’s head of information and representation, said: “The employmentfigures are once again extremely positive and show that significant progress has been made ingetting more people off jobseekers’ benefits and into work.“However, this growth in employment could be even better as many businesses are still telling theChamber that they experience difficulties in finding suitably skilled workers. “The results of our latest Quarterly Economic Survey (Q4 2014) showed that about two-thirds offirms – twice as many as in the same quarter of 2013 – struggled to recruit people with the skills theyneed. This is an area which requires urgent focus from policymakers.“In particular, getting the link right between education and the world of work has never been moreimportant if this country is serious about creating a new economy equipped for success in the longterm.“It’s an issue that the Chamber has long campaigned on and, unfortunately, the structuralproblems in this area, over the past few years in particular, are impacting upon businesses' abilitytoday to recruit the right staff to help them grow.“The skills shortage is very much a current issue, so getting right policies in place to supportrecruitment is imperative, with priority being given to specific policies regarding relief on businessinvestment and supporting those furthest away from the job market into employment.”Mansfield e-learning company expands intoIndia Mansfield-based online education provider, bksb, has opened new headquarters in India as part of growthand expansion programme.The company, which operate in India as Skills Anytime, has set up a head office and training centre in thenorthern city of Chandigarh to market its e-learning products to the sub-continent.The software enables people to improve their English by taking a short on-screen assessment of theircurrent ability, followed by a series of self-paced tutorials to help them reach the required standard.bksb’s managing director, Harvinder Atwal, said: "It is predicted that by 2025 a quarter of the globalworkforce will come from India. Our tried-and-tested English language solutions will enable people to improvetheir skills, progress to further education and, ultimately, secure employment.”LATEST NEWSExperian launches new SME service Experian, the Nottingham-based information services company, has launched a new servicewhich it says will help SMEs gain better access to credit and improve their chances ofsecuring finance and funding.Aimed at the 87 per cent of the UK SME population acknowledging a limited awareness ofhow to safeguard their credit rating, My Business Profile is an online subscription-based service which gives the directors of limited companies the abilityto monitor and manage their Experian commercial credit score.Experian says My Business Profile enables directors of limited companies to understand the top factors influencing their business’ credit score.Ade Potts, managing director of Experian’s SME business, said: “A healthy credit score is one of the essential foundations of a successful business, yetonly two in five UK SMEs have ever checked their commercial credit score. Once you are on top of it, you will be able to spot any problems early on,instead of them taking you by surprise and impacting critical business developments or new contracts further down the line. My Business Profile is asimple and affordable step in the right direction for owners to give their business the best possible chance of securing funding.”www.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk East Midlands Business Link 7LATEST NEWSLatest growth dealworth £14.8m forGreaterLincolnshireThe Greater Lincolnshire Local EnterprisePartnership has secured a further £14.8m formajor developments in the latest round ofGrowth Deals announced by the Government.The additional funding brings the totalallocated to Greater Lincolnshire under GrowthDeals so far to £126.1m.The new money will go towards fiveprojects: the South Humber Industrial Infrastructure Programme (SHIIP) phase 1 in North EastLincolnshire; the first phase of regeneration of Scunthorpe town centre; the first phase of theLincolnshire Lakes development in Scunthorpe; Agri-Food Centre of Excellence at theUniversity of Lincoln in Holbeach; and Peppermint Interchange (highway improvement) inHolbeach.Ursula Lidbetter MBE, chair of the Greater Lincolnshire LEP which has been negotiatingwith Whitehall, welcomed the latest deal.She said: “Once again Greater Lincolnshire has done very well in this latest round offunding from central government which supports growth and job creation in the regions byproviding money for major infrastructure projects.”“The five projects which made up our bid for the second round of Growth Deals focus onimproving vital transport infrastructure at the ports, building on our excellence in the agrifoodsector at Holbeach, unlocking land for much-needed housing and transforming Scunthorpetown centre.“The latest Growth Deal will bring almost £15m of additional Government funding intoGreater Lincolnshire to kickstart these projects, giving our economy a further boost andcreating jobs.”£100m growth boostfor LeicestershireThe Government has announced that the Leicesterand Leicestershire Enterprise Partnership is set toreceive a further £20.3m from national £7bn LocalGrowth Fund.The additional cash follows the LLEP’s firstsuccessful Growth Deal bid for £80m, which wasannounced in July 2014.The new money is committed to four projectswhich will see over 1,200 jobs created and localinvestment of over £80m by 2021. The four projectsinclude: Leicester City Council Connecting Leicesterscheme; Melton Cattle Market; Leicester &Leicestershire Workspace Programme; and MidlandMainline Improvements at Market Harborough.Nick Pulley, chair of the LLEP said: “Thisadditional £20m funding will boost our total GrowthDeal funding to in excess of £100m. This is by farthe biggest capital regeneration fund to be receivedin Leicester and Leicestershire to date.“This will be a crucial addition to the developmentof our local economy. Importantly, it will enable fivenew strategic economic projects to be kick-started,which between them, are set to generate up to£80million private sector leverage and create over1,200 new jobs over the next six years.”Leicester City Mayor Sir Peter Soulsby said:“Today’s announcement is excellent news forbusinesses and communities in our city and county."I am particularly pleased that funding has beensecured for the next phase of our ConnectingLeicester project, which will further improve thepublic realm in the city centre and make Leicestereven more attractive for residents and investors."Expansion plans for our workspace project havealso secured funding, allowing us to build on thesuccess of Dock by providing new grow-on spacefor small businesses."Today's announcement shows that theGovernment recognises the success of theseschemes and I welcome this endorsement of thework that we're doing in Leicester."County council leader Nick Rushton said: "I'mdelighted with the announcement of a further £20min Growth Deal support, especially the funding beingmade available to regenerate the Cattle Market inMelton Mowbray, provide new and improvedbusiness workspace in Coalville as well as anupgrade to the Midland Mainline rail networkthrough Market Harborough."These funds, added to the Growth Dealannouncement last year and our own investment insupporting the economy, will help ensure the furthergrowth of businesses and create new jobs in thecounty."MANUFACTURING NEWSEast Midlands Business Link www.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk8QTS looks to quadrupleworkforce after tapping intohome comfortsThe decision to move from an importer to a manufacturer ishelping a Leicestershire company provide better customer service,secure new contracts and create jobs.QTS, a specialist provider of wire mesh based material handlingsolutions for the logistics industry, is on the verge of quadruplingits floorspace by moving into new facilities in the East Midlands.Following issues with lead times, the management team took thedecision to reshore production from China to the UK by creating itsown manufacturing and assembly line in the region.They were supported by experts from the Business GrowthService’s Manufacturing Advisory Service (MAS) and ReshoreUK,who provided support with factory layout, installation of machineryand implementing processes that gave the company the efficiencyand quality demanded by its high-profile client base.“The rise of online shopping and the need to provide flexibilityfor warehouses and distribution centres had driven significantdemand for our products,” explained Shaun Ingram, managingdirector.“Traditionally, we’d imported around 95 per cent of our productin complete form from China, yet had noticed a desire from ourcustomers to decrease the turnaround time for installations ofsolutions, a turnaround that was probably standing at around 8-9weeks.”He continued: “There was also a pressure to ensure you areadhering to regulations, such as fire and healthy and safety…ourclients couldn’t wait that long and we had to be in a position tomove with them.“The decision was taken to create our own manufacturing plantin the East Midlands, starting first with assembly and then followedby full scale production for our solutions, which range from theeasySHELF wire decking to storGuard partitions and anti-collapsemesh.”QTS is keen to take advantage of its reputation as a bona fidemanufacturer of innovative mesh based handling solutions.From seven staff at the start of the reshoring process, thecompany has increased the workforce to 11 and holds aspirationsto grow that number to 28 by 2016 and boost turnover from £2m to£5m.This expansion will be made possible by the relocation to a new50,000 sq ft site in Nottinghamshire by August 2015.Ingram added: “We’re currently in talks with the Regional GrowthFund about helping us as the move – combined with the machinerywe’ve bought – represents a £1.2m investment in UKmanufacturing.”WFP lands £100,000 recyclingcontractIlkeston-based WFP Fabrications has won a £100,000 contract withWard Recycling to provide both hook lift containers and chain lift skipsfor the metal and waste recycling firm.Ward Recycling currently operate sites in Ilkeston and Swadlincote,and from February take over the site previously run by Richard FletcherMetals in Chesterfield.Managing director at WFP Fabrications, Matthew Holmes, said: “Wemet with Michael Ward from Ward Recycling the week before Christmasto discuss this order with him , and to reassure him that we would beable to fulfil their requirements on both quality and productivity. We aredelighted to announce that we have been awarded this contract, andproduction officially began this week.”Holmes, added: “It has been a busy few weeks here at WFP and afantastic start to the New Year. We have had meetings with oursuppliers at European Steel to ensure that the order could be met, andwe have extended the workshop to cope with the increased demand forour products.”Moonshine bringsproduction back to EastMidlandsDrinks firm Moonshine has brought its production process hometo the East Midlands after signing a new contract with Nottingham-based filling and packing firm Phoenix Contract Services.The co-packing firm stepped in at short notice this month toincrease production and storage capacity for Moonshine on theback of new orders for its range of home brew beers, ciders andwines.Moonshine intends to have its full product range produced byPhoenix within three months, fulfilling orders destined for Lakelandstores, independents and garden centres nationwide.Ian Walker, managing director of Moonshine Drinks, said: “Ourmarket share’s been growing ever since we launched three yearsago and we’ll be launching new products this spring, so weneeded a new supplier that could cope with this growing demand.“Phoenix ticked all of the boxes for us - the management team’sapproach fitted with our own and their technical knowledge filledus with confidence. They’ve always been happy to work at ourpace as we launch new products and we’ve liked how they workright from the start.They invited us on a factory visit so we could see how theyworked first hand. Being able to get everything done under oneroof was a real selling point and we’re confident that soon we’llhave put them in charge of our entire production and supplychain.”Ben Guy, managing director for Phoenix, said: “Our contractwith Moonshine has been two years in the making, however in theend the first production run needed turning around in a week. Thisjust proves our flexibility and how much time we spend lookingafter client relationships.“Having two growing businesses from Nottingham workingtogether is good news for the city’s economy, and will hopefullybe the start of a long and successful partnership between our twofirms.”MANUFACTURING NEWSwww.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk East Midlands Business Link 9East Mids manufacturers set to benefit from FitFor Nuclear £1.5m funding call A £1.5m funding boost has been unveiled to help manufacturers enter or expand their presence in the nuclearsector.Fit For Nuclear (F4N), which was developed by the Nuclear Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (NuclearAMRC) and delivered in partnership with the Manufacturing Advisory Service (MAS), is offering grants of around£10,000 to East Midlands companies that want to meet industry standards and compete for work in civil nuclear.More than 5000 SMEs are needed to ensure the UK has the necessary capacity to meet its £60bn civil new buildprogramme and the multi-billion pound decommissioning contracts already underway.“Smaller manufacturers have a vital role to play in civil nuclear, if they can meet the standards demanded by theindustry’s top tier,” said Mike Tynan, chief executive of the Nuclear AMRC.“To win work, East Midlands companies need to make sure they have the ability to meet safety, quality and coststandards, and can demonstrate that their specialist capabilities can deliver value to clients.”He continued: “We created Fit For Nuclear to help manufacturers close any gaps in performance, and this newfunding will provide vital support for anyone taking the next steps and getting ready to compete for nuclearopportunities."The funding call will allow management teams to drive business improvements in areas, such as improvedmanufacturing processes, factory layout, bid writing, training plans and strategy.Manufacturers can apply for F4N funding to support R&D projects to optimise production or develop newprocesses/products and can also access the Nuclear AMRC's world-leading workshop capabilities in welding,metrology and design support.All projects must be completed by 31st March 2016, with firms urged to apply as soon as possible to secure ashare of the funding.Coldharbour Marine targets 100new jobsMark Spencer, MPfor Sherwood,Nottinghamshire, hasvisited the newmanufacturing,research, developmentand engineeringheadquarters ofColdharbour Marine atBaxter House, RobeyClose, Linby, andheard how thecompany is set to create 100 jobs over the next year.Coldharbour Marine, recognised in the shipping world for the design,manufacture and supply of inert gas and fluid handling equipment, is in thefinal stages of gaining accreditation for an inert gas driven, in-tank, ballastwater treatment system.Coldharbour Marine’s chief executive officer, Andrew Marshall, said: “Themove to larger premises is part of a planned expansion of our inert gasbusiness and will ensure that Coldharbour is able to satisfy internationaldemand for its products following their imminent ratification under theInternational Marine Organisations’ ballast water management convention.”For the first time Coldharbour’s administrative headquarters and staff offices,research and development facilities, laboratory, factory acceptance test (FAT)rig, stores and warehousing together with a factory will all be under one roof.The £1.5m investment in new hi-tech facilities were supported by the LocalEnterprise Partnership, D2N2.Over the next 12 months, Coldharbour Marine says it expects to recruit 100additional full-time staff.Following his tour of the premises, Spencer said: “I am most impressed bythis technical, manufacturing facility and very excited to hear about the highlevel engineering jobs it will bring to the local area. Coldharbour Marine isexactly the type of business we want to see growing in Nottinghamshire."Its products are high-tech, serve international export markets and make asignificant contribution to the environmental sustainability of the world-wideshipping industry."Next >