It is hoped that Pilot House will build on and extend the success of the city’s LCB Depot in the Cultural Quarter and will be a hub providing workspace, events, exhibitions and host key projects and services to support the growth of its business communities.
Speaking on the plans, City Mayor Peter Soulsby previously said: “This project will transform a group of architecturally significant heritage buildings into a landmark destination that will become a source of pride for Leicester.
“Not only will it contribute to the wider regeneration of the Belvoir Street, Market Street and New Walk areas, and complement exciting new developments like the Gresham Building, but it will also create and support hundreds of high quality new jobs.”
Plans to transform Leicester’s Pilot House approved
Plans to transform Pilot House in Leicester have been approved.
The £11.4m proposals, initially revealed in 2020, will see the cluster of heritage buildings on King Street redeveloped into a home for creative businesses, with an atrium and cafe sitting alongside office space.
The city council proposes to deliver the phased refurbishment of the former factory, to create office and workspace to meet demand from inward investment, the professional sectors and creative/design businesses.
Rolls Royce reveals Raynesway site redevelopment plans
Plans to redevelop the South Wing at Rolls-Royce’s Raynesway site in Derby have been submitted.
The company is looking to demolish existing buildings to construct up to 19,110 sq m (GIA) of manufacturing and ancillary office floorspace, to ensure that its submarine business at the Raynesway Estate is in a position to fulfil contracts with the Ministry of Defence.
The development site currently comprises a 4-storey office building which has prior approval to be demolished, support buildings, two portacabins and hardstanding comprising footpath, roadways and trees / planting.
Routine inspections of the South Wing building have indicated that it is no longer fit for purpose, with several structural defects.
Outline planning permission is therefore being sought for the replacement of South Wing along with additional manufacturing floorspace.
The proposed development will create an additional 30 manufacturing jobs, as well as accommodating approximately 450 existing office employees.
East Midlands Railway returns to UK ownership
The management team at Abellio UK has acquired the company from Nederlandse Spoorwegen, the Dutch state-owned rail operator. It marks a significant milestone in the UK transport sector and transfers the company, which includes East Midlands Railway, to domestic ownership after approximately 20 years.
A multi-disciplinary team from RSM advised Managing Director Dominic Booth who has been at Abellio UK since 2007. He, along with the management team, will continue to run Abellio UK’s existing operations and franchises through a newly created company called Transport UK Group Ltd.
Transport UK Group Ltd will serve millions of passengers a year, operating more than 60 London bus routes and four UK rail passenger services (East Midlands Railway and West Midlands Railway, Greater Anglia and a 50:50 joint venture with Serco on Merseyrail).
Dominic Booth, Managing Director at Abellio UK (now Transport UK Group), said: “We are thrilled to return key public transport services back into UK ownership. While our name will change to Transport UK Group, our values remain the same. We will continue to play a key role in the country’s transport sector, ensuring the provision of our award-winning services to passengers around the UK and driving innovation to develop a low-emission UK transport network.
“I am grateful to RSM for the breadth and depth of their advice to the management team to ensure the successful completion of the transaction. They worked closely with the team to understand a range of complex issues and provided clear, concise advice to senior management, as well as support along the way.”
Natalie Ord, partner at RSM UK, said: “This deal brings the provision of vital services fully into UK ownership and offers a framework for continuity, certainty and confidence for all key stakeholders. Dominic and the team have a strong track record in the industry and their experience will be instrumental in their plans to drive long-term growth opportunities.
“This was a complicated cross-border transaction with many moving parts, highlighting the importance of an integrated team of specialist advisors. Abellio UK has been a valued client of RSM’s for many years and it has been fantastic to support Dominic, Ed, Alan and the team through this journey. We wish them all the best.”
The deal completed on 28 February 2023 following receipt of all formal regulatory approval from partners including the Department for Transport, Transport for London, and Merseytravel. Regulatory consent has been submitted to the Office for Rail and Road and this is expected to be issued 28 days after completion.
Nottingham Venues host ‘beam’s Great Supplier’ showcase
Delegates from 90 organisations within the UK’s business events, accommodation and meetings sector have visited Nottingham for beam’s winter ‘Great Supplier’ showcase.
Hosted at Nottingham Venues’ East Midlands Conference Centre (EMCC), the event showcases the leading venues and agents within the sector which is worth £31.2 billion annually to the UK economy. The biannual event promotes best practice and education between venues and offers the opportunity for suppliers to network with their agency counterparts, promoting product knowledge and building genuine and integral relationships.
beam, the leading membership organisation within the business events sector, chose the EMCC for the national event due to its proven track record in hosting such events, and the combination of conferencing facilities and hotel accommodation available at the 4* Orchard Hotel on the same site within the 300-acre University of Nottingham campus.
The EMCC has recently undergone a £2.1 million refurbishment programme and is on course for a record year, with strong demand for conferencing and events facilities from organisations across the UK as the sector continues to recover from the pandemic.
Being chosen to host the beam winter supplier showcase is significant for Nottingham Venues as Melissa Sobo, Director of Sales explains: “We want more companies to choose Nottingham as a destination for conferences and events as this will bring commercial benefits to the whole city. Raising awareness of the first-class facilities available at the EMCC, alongside our other venues to beam members is a step in helping us to achieve that aim.
“beam’s Great Supplier Winter Showcase is always held at a venue which is considered to be amongst the best in the UK and one which can accommodate all needs of its members. We are therefore delighted that Nottingham Venues and the EMCC was chosen. It’s another sign that our progress in developing our destination since the re-brand and re-launch in the summer of 2022 is being recognised and people like what we have to offer.”
Ryan Doyle, beam Board Member, says: “Nottingham Venues provided BEAM and our members with the perfect canvas for the event, with their auditorium and event space to allow for a free-flowing seamless event, accompanied by a delightful dinner and luxurious accommodation all under one roof.
“Sustainability is at the heart of BEAM and echoed across the industry and we feel our ethical values aligned perfectly with Nottingham Venues and their sustainability initiatives.”
Nottingham Venues is a collection of independent venues specialising in meeting and events, set in the grounds of the University of Nottingham campus. All venues, including the East Midlands Conference Centre, the Jubilee Hotel and Conferences venue, Campus Venues and the 4* Orchard Eco Hotel were brought together under one brand in July 2022 with the aim of providing an unrivalled guest experience.
Midlands inbound deals hit 15-year high as overseas investment gathers pace
In 2022, the number of inbound cross-border deals for Midlands-based companies reached its highest level in 15 years, with 91 deals completed across the region, according to the latest analysis from Deloitte’s Cross Border Deals Radar.
The research, conducted quarterly in collaboration with Experian Market IQ, tracks inbound and outbound M&A activity between investors and corporates in the Midlands and overseas. The results from 2022 reveal that inbound dealmaking across the Midlands was at its highest volume since 2007, when a record 93 inbound deals were completed.
Inbound investment into the Midlands
Manufacturing remained the region’s most targeted sector for inbound investment, accounting for 41 per cent (37) of all inbound deals. This was followed by the professional services sector, with information & communication and financial & insurance companies accounting for 16 and seven inbound deals respectively across the year.
The West Midlands in particular saw a substantial rise in inbound deal activity, with 51 deals completed in 2022, representing a 28 per cent increase on inbound activity in 2021, when 40 deals were completed. This rise in activity saw at least £7bn of foreign investment into the regional economy. Meanwhile, 40 inbound deals were completed across the East Midlands, representing an 11 per cent increase on 2021 volumes.
Overall, the Midlands placed third in inbound deal activity across the UK, with only London (190) and the South East (114) seeing more inbound investment in 2022.
Outbound investment from the Midlands
Outbound investment also posted record highs in 2022, with deal volumes at the highest levels this century. Midlands-based businesses completed 54 deals for overseas companies in 2022, beating the previous record set in 2000 when 50 outbound deals were completed.
East Midlands businesses led the way for overseas investment with 31 deals, almost twice that of 2021 when there were 16 transactions.
Mirroring inbound activity levels, the manufacturing sector was the most active industry for outbound investment, accounting for 13 deals in 2022, followed closely by the financial services sector, with 12 deals.
Nick Carr, corporate finance director at Deloitte, says: “Despite a generally challenging year for businesses across the UK, it is great to see the Midlands record such strong growth in both inbound and outbound investment, which is testament to the international competitiveness of companies in the region.
“Whilst the Midlands’ traditional manufacturing base is still the leading source of deal volumes, it’s also encouraging to see a more diverse mix of sectors being invested in, with a large number of deals across TMT, financial services, healthcare and life sciences. This reflects the evolving industry picture across the wider Midlands.
“Looking to the year ahead, the economic and geo-political headwinds from 2022 have impacted business confidence and it’s likely we’ll see that reflected, to a certain extent, in more subdued domestic and cross-border deal activity.
“Regional transaction volumes are unlikely to climb at the rate they did last year, but it is not all doom and gloom. There is appetite from businesses to grow, and it’s clear that the Midlands remains a highly competitive market for foreign investment, helping to connect the region to the wider global economy.”
Waste and recycling business secures multi-million-pound funding package to drive expansion plans
A Burton business specialising in waste and recycling management has secured a multi-million-pound funding package from HSBC UK to drive its expansion plans, helping customers to improve their carbon footprint and achieve zero waste to landfill.
This will prove fundamental to reducing the amount of waste produced by companies that ends up in landfill. Zero waste to landfill is achieved through a combination of reusing and repurposing waste as well as turning residual waste into energy. This provides an essential boost to the environment as landfill waste is the most significant contributor of greenhouse gasses in the waste management sector.
Willshee’s Waste & Recycling Limited will use the funding from HSBC UK to re-finance the recent modernisation of its three depots, and to fund future growth and modernisation of its large fleet of vehicles and sites based in Staffordshire and Derbyshire. Willshee’s expects to achieve its aim of reaching £30 million turnover in 2023. Having increased turnover by 20 per cent per annum over each of the last few years, the business is forecasting turnover of £50 million by 2026 which will involve additional sites, additional equipment, further job creation and potentially acquisitions.
John D’Aubney, finance director at Willshee’s, said: “As well as enabling us to help more businesses reach zero waste to landfill, the partnership with HSBC UK will be fundamental in helping us grow the business and expand our workforce, and enhance our services to customers in the region. The assistance provided by our relationship director Rakesh Patel has been incredibly valuable and we look forward to a long, mutually beneficial relationship going forward.”
Debbie Harper, area director at HSBC UK, added: “Willshee’s provides a critical service and does so in a responsible way by ensuring minimal waste ends up in landfill. HSBC UK is committed to supporting businesses like Willshee’s that are leading the way to create a more sustainable future.”
Willshee’s is a family-owned company based in Burton-on-Trent. Established in 1984 with just one lorry and ten skips, the company now boasts a large fleet of modern vehicles and three state-of-the-art recycling centres.
6 things business leaders can do to create a safe workplace
Your business wouldn’t be where it is today without your employees. To encourage your employees to keep delivering good results, you need to provide them with a safe working environment. Regardless of the industry you work in, or what your employees do for a job, there is still a chance that they’ll get injured or ill at work. Therefore, you need to take steps to keep your employees protected and safe. Make sure that the office is clean, and if you get a report of any issues, ensure that you carry out repairs as soon as possible. Our tips will help business leaders to create a safe workplace for their employees.
Keep Up With Regular Inspections
To maintain an excellent level of safety in the workplace, you need to keep up with regular inspections. Some of the things you should always look out for are problems with gas, electricity or plumbing. With companies such as Trade Facilities Services, you can arrange an inspection and apply for the renewal of your Electrical Safety Certificate. If the inspection goes well, you can rest assured that your employees are safe from any critical incidents. On the other hand, if the result isn’t as good, you can come up with a plan of what needs to be done in order to create better conditions for your employees.
Ensure That The Workplace Is Clean
Keeping the workplace clean shouldn’t be seen as a safety precaution. Instead, make it a standard throughout the company. Even though your business has a cleaning team, you should encourage the rest of the employees to look after their workplace. If they have lunch in the office, they should pick up anything left behind. And when they notice that there is a spillage in the hallway that might put others in danger, they should get in touch with the cleaning team. They should also try to keep all the pathways clear of clutter. That way, other employees and site visitors might be able to avoid tripping and causing injuries.
Provide Your Employees With Appropriate Training
To boost the safety of your employees, you need to make sure that they know how to work with their equipment. If they are responsible and hold on to the right procedures, they might become more productive and protect other employees at the same time. In order to achieve such a feat, you need to provide your employees with appropriate training. When you’re onboarding employees, train them to understand your policy and procedures. And if you want to bring in a new piece of equipment or machinery, you should organise a training session that would help your employees to learn how to work with the new addition.
Deal With Repairs As Soon As Possible
When you find out that some of the equipment got broken or that there is something wrong within the building, you need to resolve the issue as soon as possible. If you delay the repairs, you might put the health and well-being of your employees in danger. However, if you schedule the repairs promptly, you might be able to protect the people in the building from any harm. To make sure that the repairs don’t interrupt your employees, try to schedule them outside working hours. That way, your employees might be able to focus on their work, and your business should be able to keep running without any significant interruptions.
Encourage Employees To Take A Break
As an employer, you’re legally obligated to provide your employees with time for rest during the day. But when your employees have many tasks to finish and are busy, they might want to skip their break completely. If they feel stressed and tired, they might start making mistakes. And in the end, it might cost your business clients, money and possibly employees. To make sure that your employees are at their best throughout the day, encourage them to take breaks regularly. Even a small coffee break can help them to come up with fresh and more creative ideas. When your employees feel relaxed and full of energy, they might be able to provide your clients with better results and help your business grow and gain more recognition.
Conclusion: Get Your Employees On Board
All of your efforts might go in vain if your employees aren’t on board with your policy and procedures. To boost the safety of everyone in the building, you need to make sure that your employees know the rules and have the proper training to keep themselves and others away from harm. And when you and your employees keep the workplace clean, you might reduce the risk of accidents happening. Once you get all of your employees to do their bit and help you with your efforts, you might be able to create a working environment that is safe for all of the workers and any site visitors you might receive.
trentbarton’s MD retires
trentbarton and Kinchbus Managing Director Jeff Counsell retires today (Tuesday 28 February) after 24 years with the company and almost half a century in the bus industry.
And with impeccable timing, last week Jeff received his bus pass and vowed to use it well: “I’ll still be riding on the buses, and not just because it has been my job for so long. I’m a passionate believer in all public transport.”
Jeff, who started out in buses as a 15-year-old apprentice, said: “Retirement is a strange feeling but it’s starting to sink in. I will miss the people terribly. I will miss interacting with our people and with our customers.”
Jeff started as a 15-year-old engineering apprentice at Lancashire United Transport in the 1970s. He joined trentbarton in 1999 as engineering director and progressed to director of service delivery before becoming Managing Director in 2009.
His role directing both operations and engineering also encompassed the two companies’ relationships with national and local government, an aspect which has been of prime importance during the coronavirus pandemic and beyond.
“The last three years have been hard for so many people and for the bus industry. Covid and its aftermath kept me very busy but away from the parts of the job I love the most – being out and about with our people at depots, bus stations and on board.
“I have been very privileged to have had my career and the opportunities that came my way. It’s a great industry for moving around, experiencing different companies and regions.
“I didn’t set out from the engineering shop floor with a plan. It has been about being supported, seeing the ways onwards and upwards and taking them. I’ve learned so much along the way in places like the North East with what became Arriva.
“It’s a relatively small industry. There are tens of thousands of buses in the UK but everybody knows each other. I’m still in contact with people I worked with in the 1970s and those connections run deep across the industry.
“Bus operators are nothing without their people and that’s been central to running trentbarton. We look after our people. And I leave very optimistic that public transport has a great future. It may be different, but constant innovation will get us there.”
Brian King, chairman of trentbarton’s parent group Wellglade, said: “Everyone at trentbarton wishes Jeff a wonderful and well-earned retirement. He leaves with our thanks for his many years of hard work and dedication to the company, its people and our customers.
“Jeff can be very proud of the many awards and accolades won by trentbarton during his tenure and also by the high esteem he is held in by so many in the UK bus industry and in the business community. We’re all the better for having worked with Jeff.”
Jeff said: “I’m looking forward to spending more time with my parents, my wife and my daughters and enjoying seeing my grandchildren grow up.”
Revenue up as profits slip at Travis Perkins in challenging year
Travis Perkins, the Northamptonshire-based builders’ merchant, witnessed “robust revenue growth of 8.9%” in 2022, while profits slipped in what the company says was a challenging year with rapidly changing market conditions.
According to full year results for the year to 31 December 2022, revenue sat just under £5bn, growing from £4.6bn in 2021.
Adjusted operating profit of £295m, meanwhile, was down from £353m in 2021, impacted principally by lower year-on-year property profits and a £15m charge related to restructuring activities in the fourth quarter.
Pre tax profit hit £245m, down from £305.6m in 2021, while total profit after tax was £192m, dipping from £241m.
Despite this the year reportedly saw a “solid performance” in Travis Perkins General Merchant, “continued strong performance” from the group’s specialist distributors – BSS, Keyline and CCF – and a return to “good growth” in the year’s second half for Toolstation.
Nick Roberts, Chief Executive Officer, said: “The Group delivered a resilient trading performance in 2022 which is testament to the capability of our colleagues and the strength of our market leading propositions. I would like to thank our teams for their hard work throughout the year and their flexibility to meet customer needs amidst rapidly changing market dynamics.
“In the second half of the year we made some difficult decisions in response to the weaker trading environment and we continue to be watchful of market trends, working closely with our customers and suppliers to stay on the front foot.
“Investment continues in our strategic growth programmes including selectively exploring new destination branches for the Travis Perkins General Merchant, rolling out Toolstation in both the UK and Europe and investing in growing our value-added services, notably Hire, Benchmarx kitchens and our Staircraft business, always being mindful to flex the pace of the programme to reflect market conditions.
“Whilst it is early in the year and macroeconomic uncertainty remains, the combination of our diverse end market exposure, appropriate cost actions and further market share gains driven by continued strategy execution, will enable the Group to deliver another resilient trading performance in the year ahead.
“As a market-leading distributor of building materials products, we continue to benefit from long-term strategic growth drivers in our markets including new environmental and safety legislation and commitments from both public and private sector customers to deliver against net zero targets. We are committed to being at the forefront of both decarbonising the construction industry alongside developing the next generation of talent to create value for all of our stakeholders.”
Nottingham Trent University research project to give electric vehicle batteries a ‘second life’
Nottingham Trent University (NTU) is part of a £4.5 million research project to establish a process to recycle or reuse electric vehicle batteries to help prevent up to nine million tons of battery waste per year going to landfill.
A £582,000 grant has been awarded to the university’s Advanced Design and Manufacturing Engineering Centre (ADMEC) as part of the European-wide REBELION project which looks to give used electric vehicle Lithium-ion batteries a ‘second life’ or recycle them in a more efficient way.
Research shows that with reconditioning, the majority of electric vehicle batteries would be able to last another ten years after their capacity has fallen below 75 per cent. But the majority are sent to landfill and many of the first generation electric vehicles will soon reach their end of life.
The project – which is supported by the European Horizon programme and incorporates 11 organisations from across Europe – will also establish how recycling electric vehicle batteries could create a major source of Lithium-ion on the continent.
The main aims of the project include developing:
- Technology to sort used batteries into those suitable for a ‘second life’ and those which should be recycled
- Automated methods to dismantle batteries so that they can be recycled more efficiently
- A safety protocol for the recycling and reusing process and designing safety box containers for safe battery transportation and storage
- A standardised labelling system to provide data on second life batteries
- An analysis of how well the proposed models of recycling and repurposing perform
- A roadmap to the market for individual and joint business models
The NTU team will develop the information communication technology (ICT) platform and infrastructure. The team will also develop methods in relation to traceability of batteries, digital battery passports, ecolabelling and the calculation of eco-cost and eco-savings.
The team will also contribute to repurposing second life batteries in lighting products.
Partners in the project include Universitat Politechnica de Valenica, Accurec-Recycling, Sig de Raee Y Pilas Sociedad Limitada, Ona Product SL, Universidad Nacional de Educacion a Distancia, University of Birmingham, Fondazione Icons, Erion Energy, Erion Compliance Organization Scarl and Volkswagen Group Italia SPA.
Professor Daizhong Su, head of ADMEC which sits in NTU’s School of Architecture, Design and the Built Environment (ADBE), said: “With the increased volume of electric vehicle batteries coming towards their end of life, it’s imperative that there’s a quick and accurate way to predict a battery’s future life in order to maximise second-life applications.
“Recycling is the most environmentally-friendly way to deal with batteries after their second life and has the potential to turn them into a major economic resource in Europe, with a value of up to £23 billion per year, as the raw materials they contain can be used for further manufacturing.
“This is an exciting project which has the potential to make the electric vehicle industry even more sustainable and help prevent up to nine million tons of battery waste per year going to landfill by 2040. We look forward to working with our partners to help create sustainable solutions for many of the future challenges of the electric vehicle industry.”
