IoT firm acquires Nottinghamshire mobile data specialist
Wireless Logic, the global IoT connectivity platform provider, has acquired Jola, the mobile data specialist, for an undisclosed sum.
This agreement marks the latest step in Wireless Logic’s business expansion following a series of acquisitions for the UK company.
Headquartered in Nottinghamshire, Jola is a channel-only supplier of business communications, specialising in mobile data SIMs. Jola provides IoT and mobile data solutions to managed service providers, internet service providers, IT support companies and telecom resellers, who provision, manage, and support thousands of SIMs through Jola’s own Mobile Manager self-serve platform.
The Jola team will continue to manage Jola partners.
Andrew Dickinson, CEO of Jola, said: “Wireless Logic is one of the standout successes of the ICT sector and we have long been admirers of Oliver Tucker and his team. Jola will remain an independently-run company within the Wireless Logic Group, focussing as always on the UK channel, but with a global reach.
“The 1000+ Jola partners will see no change in the short term and over time they will benefit from product innovations across the group and more extensive supplier relationships. I would like to thank our customers, suppliers, and most of all the amazing team at Jola who have worked so hard to achieve this milestone.”
Oliver Tucker, CEO of Wireless Logic, said: “There is a natural fit between Wireless Logic and Jola, which makes this an exciting acquisition for all involved. Jola will strengthen and focus the group’s routes to market in the UK and beyond, paving the way for further business growth in the years ahead.
“We look forward to working closely with the talented team at Jola to ensure that they are able to continue their own growth, whilst leveraging the advantages of being part of the Wireless Logic Group.”
Next phase of £36m ‘Bolsover Homes’ scheme gets underway
Bolsover District Council has started work on a new development to build up to 28 bungalows in Shirebrook to help meet local need.
The development is the latest phase of the council’s £36m ‘Bolsover Homes’ scheme and will see the bungalows built on three different locations.
The main part of the development will see 24 modern one-storey properties constructed on land adjacent to Market Close/Portland Street. The bungalows will help provide much-needed homes for the elderly on a location that is near to the town centre and all its amenities.
Cabinet member for housing, councillor Sandra Peake, said: “It’s great to see work starting on the site as it’s important we keep up our momentum in building council properties for people in areas that need them. We identified a need for this type of property in Shirebrook and we are meeting that need head on with these new bungalows.
“It’s important that we look after our elderly and provide them with good quality homes, so once these properties are built and together with the expansion of Ashbourne Court, they will be well catered for in the town.”
A further three bungalows will be built on Portland Road where the garages will be demolished to make way for the new properties. Similarly, the garage court on Market Close will be demolished allowing for one further bungalow to be built.
The homes are built to allow them to be easily adapted in the future to meet any changing needs of those living there. And each property will have off-road parking, gardens and environmentally friendly features.
The ‘Bolsover Homes’ scheme is a partnership between the council and Robert Woodhead Limited and not only aims to provide new council homes, but support local businesses and trades as well as providing social outcomes like work placements and school educational visits.
Tom Woodhead, business services director at Robert Woodhead Ltd, said: “I am really excited for our team to be delivering a new project for Bolsover District Council. Once again maintaining a fundamental relationship with the client to improve the local area, whilst simultaneously implementing our climate action framework and working to reduce carbon on and off site.
“All this is further complimented by ensuring the project is giving back to the area, through local spend with our suppliers and by measuring our social, economic and environmental impact through our social value calculator.”
Not long left to make your nominations for the East Midlands Bricks Awards 2022!
With only a short time remaining until nominations close on Friday 19 August for the East Midlands Bricks Awards 2022, submit your entries NOW!
Reward the hard work of your team, and showcase your successes.
The annual East Midlands Bricks Awards celebrate the region’s property and construction industry, its people, and outstanding developments. Award categories include: most active estate agent, commercial development of the year, responsible business of the year, residential development of the year, developer of the year, deal of the year, architects of the year, excellence in design, sustainable development of the year, contractor of the year, and overall winner.
Winners will be revealed at a glittering awards ceremony on Thursday 15 September, at the Trent Bridge Cricket Ground – an evening that will also provide plenty of opportunities to forge new contacts with property and construction professionals from across the region.
Thanks to our sponsors:
William Crooks, Managing Director of Cawarden, reflected on winning an award at the 2021 event: “After being named Contractor of the Year at the British Demolition Awards at the start of September, we were absolutely thrilled to win the same accolade from the East Midlands Bricks Awards a few weeks later.
“The event is a real showcase for the regional property and construction sector and we are proud to be recognised for our project and service delivery expertise as a leading specialist contractor. It was a great night and provided an opportunity to catch up with some familiar faces as well as meeting new with the wonderful Trent Bridge Cricket Ground as a backdrop.
“Well done to the Cawarden team for continuously going above and beyond and maintaining high standards for our valued clients. Congratulations must also go to all the other awards finalists and award winners on the night.”
To submit a business or development for the East Midlands Bricks Awards 2022, please click on a category link below or visit this page.- Most active estate agent
- Commercial development of the year
- Responsible business of the year
- Residential development of the year
- Developer of the year
- Deal of the year
- Architects of the year
- Excellence in design
- Sustainable development of the year
- Contractor of the year
- Overall winner (this award cannot be entered, the winner will be selected from those nominated)
Book your tickets now
Tickets can now be booked for the awards event – click here to secure yours. The special awards evening and networking event will be held on 15 September 2022 in the Derek Randall Suite at the Trent Bridge County Cricket Club from 4:30pm – 7:30pm. Connect with local decision makers over canapés and complimentary drinks while applauding the outstanding companies and projects in our region. The event will also welcome John Forkin MBE DL, Managing Director at award-winning investment promotion agency Marketing Derby, as keynote speaker, as well as award-winning mind reader, magician, and professional mentalist Looch, who will bewilder and astonish guests during the evening’s networking. Dress code is standard business attire.
To be held at:
Forge new partnerships at the East Midlands Expo
On Monday 14 November 2022 the East Midlands Expo will return, providing the perfect opportunity to forge new contacts.
An established event of over 20 years, for which Business Link is a proud partner, the free to attend expo is well targeted and aimed at the construction, property, business, investment, finance, professional services and related B2B markets.
Taking place at the East Midlands Conference Centre, Nottingham, the day will begin with exhibitor breakfast networking, with the exhibition opening to attendees at 9am, and a seminar taking place between 10:45am and noon.
A special networking lunch (for which tickets can be purchased here) will then take place between 12:15pm and 2:15pm, and the exhibition will close at 3:30pm.
For more information on exhibiting at the event click here.
To register to attend the event for free click here.
To secure tickets for the networking lunch click here.
From property agents to developers, architects, contractors, investors, PR firms, and more, see the list of current exhibitors here.Plans submitted for half a million sq ft employment development in Mansfield
Commercial Estates Group (CEG) and property developer HBD have submitted a detailed planning application for circa 412,745 sq ft (38,345 sq m) of employment space on a 12ha site to the south-east of Penniment Farm, close to Mansfield.
The site is allocated within the Mansfield District Council Local Plan for residential and employment use, with homes already under delivery. This full application will see a range of new commercial space, including light industrial, storage and distribution, all set within attractive new woodland and green spaces.
The development is expected to create over 500 new jobs, including distribution, skilled and semi-skilled light industrial roles, along with training and apprenticeship opportunities throughout its construction.
The site lies midway between Sheffield and Nottingham and offers easy access onto the M1 motorway from J28 or J29, with direct access from the A617, the Mansfield and Ashfield Regeneration Route (MARR).
Subject to the granting of planning permission, development will commence early next year.
Lawrence Escott, investment manager from CEG, said: “We have worked on the Penniment Farm development for many years and new homes are already being delivered at the site. This significant speculative employment scheme will complement this, creating hundreds of jobs in the local area.
“CEG is actively regenerating two key Midlands employment sites at Vesuvius, Worksop and Vaughan Trading Estate in Tipton. Here we are developing more than a million sq ft of high quality space which, similar to Penniment Farm, is designed to appeal to inward investing companies, trade and industrial occupiers, as well as local businesses. Both have been incredibly successful generating new jobs and economic benefits.”
Justin Sheldon, director and head of region at HBD, said: “This is a fantastic opportunity to not only inject much-needed new industrial stock into the market, but to create hundreds of new jobs for the community while attracting inward investment and driving new opportunities for the wider region.
“There is significant demand for high-quality, well-located industrial and logistics units and we expect to see strong interest in the scheme. It is anticipated that the development will be brought forward on a speculative basis which reflects the demand for this type of space and our continued confidence in the region.”
The agents on the scheme are M1, FHP and CPP.
Acres engineers vision of the future with open day for next generation
With National Manufacturing Day (July 7th) over for another year, one Derby-based engineering firm has been helping the next generation of engineers get to grips with the industry.
Melbourne-based Acres Engineering, which specialises in manufacturing custom solutions for clients across the UK and increasingly overseas, welcomed families to their Castle Lane facility, opening up the shop floor to give visitors a glimpse of what goes on in a busy engineering firm.
Acres set up a factory walk, stopping at processes including design, fabrication, laser cutting, powder coating and assembly, where each process was explained in an accessible style by an Acres staff member.
Luke Parker, Managing Director at Acres Engineering, said: “It was really good to show everyone around as it gets us thinking about how we can explain quite complicated processes in a simple and accessible way. One very bright 7 year old visitor was exceptionally interested in what we do in the coding and 3d printing arena and amazed us all with his knowledge of the subject.
“The really encouraging thing is that a number of the visitors enquired about apprentice positions after enjoying the introduction to the world of manufacturing engineering and that is heartening to hear.”
As well as hearing from the Acres team, a ‘virtual welding experience’ went down very well, with visitors trying to perform the perfect weld run to achieve a high score.
With the event proving popular, HR manager Alison Parker has organised an apprentice intake day for visitors to come and look at apprenticeships available at Acres on 1 August.
Alison concludes: “We have been committed to our apprenticeship programme for over 10 years now and have seen some fantastic individuals come into our business. We are all exceptionally proud of our apprentices, some of whom have worked their way through university and become degree qualified. We will continue to invest in the next generation of engineers and look forward to welcoming some over again on August 1.”
Businesses shares success stories as they celebrate strategic partnerships with schools and colleges
The Managing Director of a Swadlincote firm has revealed how he is addressing the current recruitment crisis by working closely with a nearby school after signing up to take part in a local careers network.
Andy Neal, MD of IG Masonry Support, said that the company has now taken on three school-leavers from The Pingle Academy, who have been given a variety of roles across the firm, through his work as an enterprise adviser with the D2N2 Derbyshire South Careers Hub.
Mr Neal was speaking at an event held to celebrate the work of D2N2 Careers Hub enterprise advisers, who are experienced professionals from companies and who work closely with career leaders and senior leadership teams in schools and colleges across Derby and South Derbyshire.
The work is taking place as part of a national programme being run by the Careers & Enterprise Company funded by the Department for Education and led locally by the D2N2 Local Enterprise Partnership.
Representatives of 21 companies of all sizes shared best practice and experiences of being an enterprise adviser at the event, which was held at the Farmhouse, in Ashbourne Road, Mackworth where they were joined by representatives of local cornerstone employer partners such as Rolls-Royce, Alston and Lubrizol.
Mr Neal has been a D2N2 enterprise adviser working with the Pingle Academy for more than two years and said he saw the positive benefits that it brings to both his company and the young people themselves.
He said: “Being an enterprise adviser has opened my eyes to the opportunities that exist for firms through working with their local schools and helped us to explain the wide variety of roles that we offer across the company, including HR and finance, as well as the manufacturing side of what we do.
“We have struggled to recruit talented young people in the past, but within days of a school visit, I received three emails from students asking about employment.
“There is a shortfall of engineers in the UK, especially locally, so having these links is great for us, while our staff are getting a lot of enjoyment out of working with the Pingle Academy – especially those members of staff who used to go there.”
The event also heard from Seleena Creedon, owner of Derby-based Credo Marketing, who spoke about her own work with students at St Andrew’s School, a special school in Chaddesden, and what she has learned about preparing young people with learning and physical barriers for their best next step.
Will Morlidge, Chief Executive of the D2N2 Local Enterprise Partnership, said: “Today’s event has been a long time coming but it has been extremely heartening to know how the companies involved have enjoyed their participation and the benefits that it’s brought for everybody.
“In an ideal world, schools and local employers would be working closely together to ensure that students have a defined pathway from the classroom to the shopfloor or boardroom and are given the skills they need to make that transition smoothly.
“We’re not in that situation yet but these careers hubs are an excellent start and we’re extremely grateful to everybody who has given up their time to get them off the ground and achieving the kind of results we have heard about today.”
The D2N2 Careers Hub is one of the largest career hubs across England, locally covering 151 schools and colleges in Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire, with more than 145 Enterprise Advisers.
18 East Midlands businesses win Gold for outstanding support towards the Armed Forces community
A record 18 organisations in the East Midlands have received the Employer Recognition Scheme Gold Award for their outstanding support towards the Armed Forces community.
Representing the highest badge of honour, Employer Recognition Scheme Gold Awards are awarded to those that employ and support those who serve in the Armed Forces, veterans and their families.
The organisations in the East Midlands who have won the prestigious award are:
- Derbyshire: Acres Engineering Limited, Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service, North East Derbyshire District Council, University Hospitals of Derby and Burton NHS Foundation Trust, We Fix Feet Limited
- Leicestershire: ADM Shine Technologies Limited, Melton Borough Council, Pall-Ex Group Limited
- Lincolnshire: JD2E Ltd, KryptoKloud Limited, South Kesteven District Council
- Nottinghamshire: Anderson Green Ltd, Bassetlaw District Council, Gedling Borough Council, Newark and Sherwood District Council, Kuku Connect
- Northamptonshire: Goodwill Solutions CIC, Wright Logistics Services Limited
Ward welcomes York scrap merchant into the family
Midlands-based metal recycling and waste management specialist, Ward, has welcomed York scrap merchant, L. Clancey & Sons into its extended family with the acquisition of its metal processing business in York.
Independent, fourth generation family run business, Ward, has completed a deal with L. Clancey & Sons for its 3.9-acre scrap metal site in York and the business as a going concern. The acquisition of the business will further enhance the nationwide capabilities of Ward, offering greater coverage in the North of England, while enabling the succession planning of Clancey’s, as two of its partners take retirement.
Clancey’s has a well-established reputation, developed over its 160 history and this successful operating model will be maintained, as will the business name. One of the sellers, Richard Clancey, a member of the founding family, will stay on as site operations manager, employed by Ward and all other staff are being retained.
Thomas Ward, commercial director at Ward, said: “This is a really exciting time for both our family businesses. Clancey’s have a solid reputation in metal recycling, they share our values, outlook and approach to customers. We hope they will become an extension of the Ward team operationally, while retaining its own identity.
“This new site gives us even more geographical reach for both businesses with good transport links to our Midlands, Immingham and Redcar sites.”
Richard Clancey, partner, at L. Clancey & Sons, said: “Both our businesses are strongly family orientated and we have very similar values, from the way we look after our teams to the way we support our customers. This will be a really positive step for us all. Both myself and my daughter are looking forward to working with Ward and seeing what we can achieve together.”
Ward was supported with legal advice from Square One Law (led by Charlie Fielding) and financial due diligence was provided by PKF Smith Cooper (led by David Nelson). Azets (led by Stephen Garbett) and Harrowells (led by Matthew Rowley) acted on behalf of L. Clancey & Sons.
Derby law firm acquires new office space to aid expansion
Derby-based law firm, Right Legal Group, has acquired an additional new office space adjacent to their current head office situated at Wyvern Business Park in Derby.
The new 5,000 sq ft office will provide much needed space to support the business as it continues to see exponential growth, and will house the central support services team.
The law firm, which specialises in providing tailor-made wills and probate services for people across the country via their RightWill service, has taken on the new premises to allow further expansion over the next five years – having reached full capacity at their current offices.
The business has been based in Derby since 2014, and the announcement follows an incredibly successful period for the firm, having recruited more than 50 staff in the last year – taking their total head count to 130.
Carrie Caladine, Managing Director at Right Legal Group, says: “I am incredibly proud of the team and all we have achieved as a firm in the last few years. We are very passionate about the services that we provide and the work that we do. We are committed to investment and enhancing the experience that clients have with us.
“Every time we help a client to preserve their inheritance is a real achievement for us. We discuss internally that our reason for getting out of bed every day is to give our clients a voice and make sure that voice is heard when they are no longer here – it really is our passion.
“In addition to our work, the number of people that have joined us at the start of their career and gone on to qualify as solicitors, run departments and excel at their professional goals is always a huge highlight for us.
“We are delighted to expand our head offices further in Derby, we provide services across the country via our branch offices and partner network so accessibility is key and Derby is perfectly positioned. We are very proud to be part of such a supportive business community here, and are committed to supporting talent and investment in the local area as we continue to train and recruit.”
