£2.6m centre to train mineral resources experts for new generation

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£2.6m centre to train mineral resources experts for new generation
A new generation of mineral resource experts to enable the UK’s transition to sustainable energy are to be trained by a consortium representing academia and industry, led by the University of Leicester. The Natural Environment Research Council (NERC), part of UK Research and Innovation, have announced £2.6 million to support a multi-institution centre for doctoral training, the Training and Research Group for Energy Transition Mineral Resources (TARGET), to address the skills and research needs for the UK. It is one of four new Natural Environment Research Council-funded centres that will teach the next generation of PhD students who will go on to build careers in research, business and public service. Each year, over 3 billion tonnes of metals are produced from mineral resources. Mineral resources underpin society – without them we would have no infrastructure, no industry and no technology. The UK’s transition to renewable energy generation and use – through wind turbines, solar panels and electric vehicles for example – is increasing the demand for mineral resources. Some of them are considered ‘critical’ – economically important but with challenged supply chains that are vulnerable to disruption. Growing expertise in critical mineral resources will help to develop secure and sustainable supply. The TARGET centre is a UK wide group of universities, research organisations and industrial partners, led by the University of Leicester’s Centre for Sustainable Resource Extraction that will provide doctoral-level training in the full lifecycle of minerals from sector leaders. TARGET is recruiting its first cohort of researchers to start in October 2024.
TARGET’s leader Dr Dan Smith, from the University of Leicester School of Geography, Geology and the Environment, said: “TARGET is a really exciting opportunity for us to train a next generation of researchers with the skills they need to tackle some of the biggest challenges in mineral resources: how do they form? How can we find the raw materials we need? How can we process and extract them efficiently, and how can we be more sustainable whilst doing so? “It’s not just about getting more resources either. We know we need more careful stewardship of the resources we do have – considering circular economy models, better waste management, and more efficient use of mineral products.” The TARGET Centre will combine PhD research projects with a multidisciplinary training programme that will provide skills in mineral exploration, processing, finance, policy and sustainability at all stages of a mineral’s use – from a rock in the ground to the end of a product’s useful life. TARGET’s training will be led by a mix of academic researchers and industry practitioners, and the parentship of the centre includes some of the most important global companies in mining, mineral analysis, environmental standards, and finance. TARGET will operate alongside other UKRI programmes, including the £15 million CLIMATES programme being delivered by Innovate UK, boosting rare earth circularity, to provide opportunities for UK industry and research to enhance the responsible supply of minerals. Science, Research and Innovation Minister, Andrew Griffith, said: “Backing our brightest students to tackle issues as vital as flooding and protecting our water quality is an investment in protecting the landscape of the UK, while defending our planet and the resources we need to deliver us all healthier and more prosperous lives. “With more than £10m in funding over the coming years it will also help to skill-up students in high-value research, which will grow the UK economy and ensure we fulfil the potential of the talent spread throughout our country.” Professor Peter Liss, Interim Executive Chair of NERC, said: “This investment by NERC will equip the next generation of environmental science researchers with the technical and professional skills to tackle some of the most significant challenges facing the UK and globally. “The new centres for doctoral training will focus on the key themes of flood management, freshwater quality, sustainable mineral resources and wetland conservation.”

Land sale at Kirton to create 80 jobs for local economy

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Land sale at Kirton to create 80 jobs for local economy
The latest sale of land at Kirton Distribution Park will create an additional 80 jobs for the local economy.
Lincolnshire County Council has recently finalised the sale of 10.28 acres at the site, which completes phase 3 of the development. The sale to Dhoot Transmission UK, known locally as Parkinson Harness Technology, will allow them to construct a new factory – manufacturing specialist vehicle parts, following planning permission being granted last year. Cllr Colin Davie, executive councillor for economy and place at the county council, said: “This new factory will be a fantastic addition to the 27-acre Kirton Distribution Park, and Parkinson Harness Technologies will be joining other high profile businesses on the site such as Duckworth Jaguar Land Rover and Sportsbikeshop. “All of the land here has now been allocated, and Kirton is another example of how the council is providing the investment to encourage businesses to start-up, re-locate and grow, in our county.” David Earnshaw, Managing Director at Parkinson Harness Technology, said: “Parkinson Harness Technology (PHT) are delighted to announce their plans for construction of a new facility at Kirton. “The facility will enable the company to further develop their position as a leading supplier of High Voltage leads for the UK specialist vehicle market alongside their long standing Low Voltage product. “When your bins are emptied, it is in part, with product made here in Lincolnshire. We’d like to thank both Lincolnshire County Council and Boston Borough Council for their critical help in putting this project together.”

£4m Chesterfield rail innovation facility on track for planning permission

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£4m Chesterfield rail innovation facility on track for planning permission

Engineering consultancy Rodgers Leask is leading the design team currently working on RIBA Stage 4 designs for the Derbyshire Rail Industry Innovation Vehicle (DRIIVe) in Chesterfield, which is awaiting planning permission.

The modern rail innovation and training centre will provide more than 1,400 square metres of floor space consisting of classroom and workshop training areas, and specialist research and development facilities – including a digital laboratory and commercial offices.

Appointed via the ESPO 2664 framework, Rodgers Leask’s involvement so far includes a full-service offering, comprising structural and civil engineering consultancy, geo-environmental engineering investigations and transport planning advice. The consultancy’s various experts are working to overcome the operational constraints posed by the busy industrial site, while also protecting the surrounding area’s interesting features – such as the historically significant Barrow Hill Roundhouse.

Kriston Harvey, director at Rodgers Leask, said: “This is a very important project for the area and therefore we’re proud to be involved. Not only will it bring additional full-time jobs to the local area, it will also provide training facilities to enable people to learn new skills and open the door to highly skilled career opportunities in the rail industry.

“The research and development aspect of the building will see it become a prominent location for rail technology research and innovation, with fantastic links to the rail network.

“As everyone recognises the significant benefits that the project can bring to the community, engagement between the client, design team and other key stakeholders has been very positive and productive.  

“Chesterfield has a clear vision for how it wants to develop over the coming years, with a strong plan for growth – it has been exciting to work with the council on this key project.”

In total the building is expected to cost around £4 million, with funding for the project being provided through the Staveley Town Deal. Development of the centre is being delivered by Barrow Hill Engine Shed Society, Chesterfield Borough Council and New Rail – part of Newcastle University.

Mervyn Allcock, general manager at Barrow Hill Roundhouse, said: “If it is approved, DRIIVe will help establish Barrow Hill as the home of the rail industry in Chesterfield and we look forward to speaking to companies about the potential benefits of being based at the centre. Any revenue from the building will be used to support the Roundhouse in achieving its aim of preserving our local Rail heritage.”

Councillor Tricia Gilby, leader of Chesterfield Borough Council and vice chair of the Staveley Town Deal Board, said: “The Rail sector offers a fantastic range of high-quality careers and DRIIVe is all about ensuing our residents can receive the skills and training they need to access these opportunities. This is an ambitious project that will create opportunities for generations to come and reflects the council’s aims to expand the local Rail sector.

“I’m delighted that Town Deal funding is being used to support the development of this building because new training facilities like this will improve career prospects and help ensure that Staveley is the place to start, to stay and to grow.”

Rodgers Leask is working alongside architect Frank Shaw Associates, building services consultancy CPW and planning consultant Planning & Design Group. A planning decision is expected in early 2024. 

Chamber achieves WELL Health-Safety Rating

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Chamber achieves WELL Health-Safety Rating
East Midlands Chamber is helping to set the bar for workplace wellbeing after landing a global accreditation – with the help of the region’s top expert in the field. The region’s largest business representation group has achieved the WELL Health-Safety Rating at its offices in Chesterfield and Nottingham, following consultancy support from workplace consultants and office fit-out specialists Blueprint Interiors, based in Ashby-de-la-Zouch. Administered by the International WELL Building Institute (IWBI), the rating is an evidence-based, third-party verified rating for buildings that focuses on operational policies, maintenance protocols, stakeholder engagement and emergency plans to address a post-Covid environment now and into the future. WELL certification helps large and small businesses to take the necessary steps in order to prioritise the health and safety of their staff, visitors and stakeholders by reviewing environmental aspects such as air and water quality, nourishment, light, noise and comfort. The WELL Health-Safety Rating focuses on stakeholder engagement, health resources, emergency preparedness and cleaning procedures. East Midlands Chamber director of resources Lucy Robinson said: “The pandemic shone a new light on how we manage workspaces in order to instil confidence among employees and visitors who use our buildings, whether it is everyday or on a hybrid working basis. “We therefore felt it was important to adopt a recognised standard to ensure our buildings support the wellbeing of our people when they are working from the office in order to support collaboration with colleagues. “Working closely with our patron Blueprint Interiors, we focused on areas including air and water quality management, cleaning and sanitation, emergency preparedness, health service resources, and stakeholder engagement and communication. “As a result of these efforts, we are delighted to have received the WELL Health-Safety Rating, which we believe will enhance our offer as an employer of choice in the region while also acting as an exemplar for our 4,000-plus members.” Workplace design consultancy and interior fit-out specialist Blueprint Interiors became the first company in the East Midlands to achieve the WELL Health-Safety Rating in 2021, and now supports other businesses to meet the requirements for accreditation. Rebecca Beadle is a WELL-accredited professional, and lead project designer and well-being specialist at Blueprint Interiors. She said: “We are continuously innovating in order to bring workplace consultancy, practical processes, sustainable building techniques, psychological theory, data insights and accreditations such as the WELL Building Standard together to ensure workplaces meet the needs of the people that use them. “East Midlands Chamber has fully embraced all these principles and we are pleased to have been able to support it to achieve this prestigious rating.”

Revenue rises at Light Science Technologies while pre-tax losses are cut

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Revenue rises at Light Science Technologies while pre-tax losses are cut

Revenue is on the rise at Light Science Technologies Holdings (LSTH) plc, which comprises the three divisions of controlled environment agriculture, contract electronics manufacturing, and passive fire protection.

According to a trading update for the 12 months ended 30 November 2023, the group saw revenue increase by approximately 13% to £9.25m, up from £8.17m in the year prior. This was driven by growth across each of the trading divisions, as LSTH made solid organic and acquisitive progress. 

Overhead cost reductions during the period resulted in 20% cost savings, while gross margins grew by approximately 27% to 22.5%. As a result, the Derbyshire business expects to report an unaudited loss before tax of £1.3m, reducing from a £2.72m loss last year.

Totally awarded £13m contract extension to provide national contingency support for NHS 111

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Totally awarded £13m contract extension to provide national contingency support for NHS 111

Totally, the Derby-based provider of frontline healthcare services, corporate fitness and wellbeing services, has been awarded a contract extension by NHS England to provide national NHS 111 contingency services for a further year. 

The contract, awarded to Vocare, part of Totally Urgent Care, will run for 12 months from 16 February 2024 at a value of £13 million per annum.  

NHS England originally commissioned this support to provide additional call handling and clinical capacity to help to alleviate pressures on local NHS 111 services. The original 12-month contract was announced on 16 January 2023 and was for £10 million per annum.

The extension increases the level of support to be provided and reflects the ongoing demand for NHS 111. NHS 111 provides an essential service to the UK population, offering support as wide-reaching as over-the-telephone healthcare advice, to access to urgent and emergency care. 

Wendy Lawrence, CEO of Totally, said: “Totally has significant experience in providing quality, resilient and responsive NHS 111 services. To date we have answered almost half a million calls as part of the NHS England’s National Resilience programme.

“These calls would otherwise have gone unanswered leaving those seeking to access care without the support they needed. As demand has increased, we have responded, increasing capacity to ensure that calls to NHS 111 across the country are not abandoned. 

“The extension of this contract for a further year means that Totally continues to be a core partner in the delivery of NHS 111 services until February 2025.”

Revenue grows at Mattioli Woods

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Revenue grows at Mattioli Woods
Revenue has risen at Mattioli Woods, the specialist wealth and asset management business, in the first six months of its financial year, despite a challenging macroeconomic backdrop. In a trading update in advance of its interim results for the six months ended 30 November 2023, the Leicester business said it “has performed well in complex markets,” with revenue up 8% to £59.1m, growing from £54.9m in the same period last year. The company also saw 374 new client wins with an asset value of £82.2m. Total client assets of the group remained stable at £15.2bn, though down slightly on last year’s £15.3bn, with reduction in assets driven by £155m downward market movements. Ian Mattioli MBE, Chief Executive, says: “I am pleased to report revenue growth in the first six months of this financial year, despite the challenging macroeconomic backdrop that continues to affect client sentiment and market value of clients’ assets. “Revenues were 8% higher and the group delivered organic revenue growth of 4%, reflecting the resilient nature of our revenue model combining fee-based revenues for specialist advice and administration with ad-valorem investment management revenues linked to the value of clients’ assets, despite a slight fall in the value of client assets under advice and administration during the period. “We enjoyed particularly strong growth within our core pension consultancy and employee benefits business segments, with the proposed changes to pension and tax rules announced in the Chancellor’s recent Autumn Statement driving strong demand for advice. “We continue to focus on the integration of recently acquired businesses, with realisation of revenue synergies across the group remaining a priority. We also completed a detailed review of our current investment offering for clients during the period which has identified opportunities for enhancing group revenues whilst reducing clients’ costs. “Our focus will now shift to implementing these strategic changes for the benefit of both our clients and shareholders.”

Leicester online electrical retailer issues profit warning

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Leicester online electrical retailer issues profit warning
Marks Electrical Group, the Leicester-based online electrical retailer, has hailed strong revenue growth, but warned of gross product margin not increasing to levels expected, impacting full year profit guidance. According to a trading update for the nine months ended 31 December 2023, the firm saw revenue growth of 22% to £88.9m, up from £72.9m in the same period last year, and increased market share in the Major Domestic Appliances and Consumer Electronics markets. In a challenging trading environment where consumers remain highly price-conscious, however, Marks said: “gross product margin did not increase to the levels we expected, and despite proactive action on other controllable costs, the impact of this in the peak trading period has had a material impact on our full year profit guidance.” As a result, the business now expects full year revenue to be in the range of £115-118m with EBITDA in the range of £5-6m. Marks added: “Going forward, we expect to see continued revenue growth in-line with our expectations, but remain cautious on the speed of recovery in consumer buying patterns, which we expect to temporarily impact the recovery of our gross product margin.” Mark Smithson, Chief Executive Officer, said: “I continue to remain proud of the entire team at Marks Electrical for delivering a record peak trading period whilst gaining market share and maintaining our industry leading Trustpilot score of 4.8. This further demonstrates the strength and attractiveness of our market-leading customer offering and as brand awareness improves, we continue to see a strong repeat customer rate. “Whilst I am personally frustrated about our expected margin progression in the second half, I remain confident about our long-term growth prospects and continue to be impressed by our ability to deliver market share gains profitably, against a fiercely competitive backdrop, whilst maintaining the highest levels of customer service standards in the industry.

“As we work tirelessly as a team to enhance our gross product margin in the remaining months of FY24 and into FY25, I also know from 37 years of trading that margin fluctuations are inevitable, they present us with an opportunity to learn, and will ultimately enable the Group to deliver long-term value creation and position us as the UK’s leading premium electrical retailer.”

Property groups reveal merger plans to create business worth £214m

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Property groups reveal merger plans to create business worth £214m
Grantham-based Belvoir Group, the property, mortgage and franchise group, has unveiled merger plans with The Property Franchise Group (TPFG), with the aim of creating a leading property franchise business worth approximately £214.4m.

The combined group will benefit from increased scale with more than 930 property franchise locations, managing approximately 152,000 tenanted properties across the UK and will be expected to sell more than 28,000 properties per annum.

For the financial year ended 31 December 2022, TPFG and Belvoir together generated in excess of £60 million in combined revenue, with management service fees of approximately £27 million and adjusted EBITDA of approximately £22.5 million.

The combined group board will comprise, among others, Gareth Samples (TPFG Chief Executive Officer), David Raggett (TPFG Chief Financial Officer) and Michelle Brook (Belvoir executive director), with Paul Latham (TPFG chair) as the combined group’s chair.

Upon completion of the merger, Belvoir shareholders will hold approximately 48.25% and TPFG shareholders will hold approximately 51.75%.

Paul Latham, non-executive chairman of TPFG, said: “I am delighted to confirm that we have reached an agreement with the Belvoir board and major Belvoir shareholders on the merger with Belvoir. We believe that the merger represents a compelling opportunity for all shareholders.

“Belvoir brings further breadth through its nationwide network and a financial services business which will be complementary to our current offering. The merger will enable us to continue to grow in the sector and, ultimately, deliver greater value to shareholders of the combined group.”

Jon Di-Stefano, non-executive chairman of Belvoir, said: “The merger of Belvoir and TPFG combines two businesses with much in common, each supporting a network of entrepreneurial franchises, and will create one of the UK’s largest multi-brand lettings and estate agency groups combined with a growing financial services business.

“With their complementary geographic footprints providing both scale and diversification across a variety of high street and hybrid brands combined with high levels of recurring revenue, we feel sure that the combined group will provide a robust platform from which to grow.”

2024 Business Predictions: Mark Jennison, Director of Marketing and Business Development at Cosy Garden Rooms

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2024 Business Predictions: Mark Jennison, Director of Marketing and Business Development at Cosy Garden Rooms
It’s that time of year, when Business Link Magazine invites the region’s business leaders to offer up their predictions for the year ahead.  It has become something of a tradition, given that we’ve been doing this now for over 30 years. Here we speak to Mark Jennison, Director of Marketing and Business Development at Cosy Garden Rooms. At the end of 2022, moving towards 2023, we were predicting a business target to survive what we thought was going to be a volatile year. There was little talk of growth, what with the economic climate due to the continuing conflict that had already driven fuel prices up and consequently increased interest rates. Those predictions were correct and 2023 saw many companies fall by the wayside, a consequence of the consumer feeling the pinch and tightening their belts. And here we are again, making predictions for 2024 and, on the whole, it is much the same but with increased optimism. In 2023, at Cosy Garden Rooms, we used our business agility to keep running costs low to combat the higher raw material prices and still offer great value to our customers. There are signs that as we enter the new year, those material prices will start to return to where we would expect them to be. There are also more companies offering a range of new products on the market and this competition is good for those in construction and for the consumer who is looking for innovative and sustainable designs for their garden rooms. It was also notable that towards the end 2023, more consumers were asking about finance in order to enable them to either purchase their garden room or maybe get something a little better than they would otherwise be able to afford. This is a great sign that the market is feeling more confident in the future and looking to invest in their property. This trend of investing in what you have has been buoyed by the falling house prices and a reluctance to move. This includes people asking about and building small garden room annexes for a relative to live in or a garden office, to free up that much needed spare room in the house. This is where a good quality garden room that can be used all year round really matters. We also predict that 2024 will see an increase in alternative markets such as schools and universities that find the demands on their existing spaces easily solved by the addition of outbuilding built on site. Adding a bespoke building is quick, affordable and designed to meet the needs of the establishment, including accessibility for all. In general, the feeling for 2024 is that business will grow and we will see that companies such as Cosy Garden Rooms, that offer innovative quality products and services, will not just survive, but thrive. 2023 was a wake up call for many, and the end for others. 2024 will see those that have adapted start to benefit from their hard work.
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