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Aerospace specialist sets up HQ at Segensworth
Folland Aerotech rejected business incentives from Switzerland, Germany and Spain to make an office near Southampton the nerve centre of international operations. Co-founders Stan Lewry, a stress engineer, and Colin Baker, a structural designer, were previously located near Zurich for nearly 20 years.
Folland Aerotech is involved in some of the largest multi-national aerospace programmes in the world, heading up stress analysis and design work on movable parts of aircraft wings and fairings. The firm was recently awarded a €1.5 million contract in connection with the Airbus A350 extra wide body jet; and ongoing support projects include the military transport aircraft Airbus A400M.
In a deal through Hughes Ellard, Folland Aerotech signed a five-year lease on two self- contained offices with 12 parking spaces at 1 Gloster Court, 5 Whittle Avenue, Segensworth West. Folland Aerotech’s business space needs reflect anticipated pipeline work, backed by a recruitment drive for first-rate design engineers.
Russell Mogridge of Fareham-based Hughes Ellard, who represented the private landlord of 1 Gloster Court, said: “This is an inspirational example of British intelligence leading Europe in the intensely demanding and complex field of aerospace engineering. Folland Aerotech’s arrival is a stirring vote of confidence in Hampshire and the UK. The letting reflects an increase in office enquiries from small-to- medium-sized enterprises seeking office space under 279 sq m this year.“
Folland Aerotech, which currently has a vanguard team of 12 at its new headquarters,
with plans for a further 20 full-time design engineers on site, also carries out work packages for Swiss-based space programmes. They include the development of payload fairings on the Ariane 5 rocket, which launches ’workhorse’ cargo carriers on resupply missions to the International Space Station. Folland Aerotech also compiles stress analysis reports on commercial space satellites.
Added Lewry: “With the strength of the Swiss franc, and the need to import the majority of the workforce, it was deemed to be uneconomical to operate from Switzerland. Various sites were considered throughout Europe, with Switzerland, Germany and Spain all offering business inducements as the aerospace industry is deeply respected by many countries.
“It was felt a design/analysis office to suit our needs would be best located on the central south coast of England, where key skills are available, and at a location with ease of access to major motorways and Southampton Airport.
“Once our head office operations are consolidated, building a strong stress analysis team capable of undertaking sizeable work packages in the aerospace domain, we’ll be seeking to interact with colleges and universities to utilise graduate training schemes.“
Work will also come in through joint venture partner Lewry TSE Switzerland, which is highly regarded in Switzerland. Lewry TSE has a partnership with RUAG Space, the largest independent supplier of space technology in Europe, and major involvement in multinational programmes, particularly in the field of structural analysis.
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“It is intended to relocate as much of this work as possible back to Folland Aerotech’s head office, where it can be undertaken more economically, and be creating high-value jobs locally,“ Lewry continued.
Funding granted to assist women in global leadership
Women scientists in the Middle East hoping to rise to senior positions are being given a helping hand by two experts in global leadership competencies. Dr Liza Howe-Walsh (right) and Dr Sarah Turnbull (left), from the University of Portsmouth Business School, have won funding to run workshops which could help revolutionise women’s career paths.
Their workshops will include psychometric diagnostic assessments to reveal whether barriers women might have to becoming leaders exist in their minds or personality, in their skills, or in another area. The workshops will also include one-to-one sessions to help women navigate their way to the tops of their careers.
Howe-Walsh, an international human resources expert, and Turnbull, a marketing expert who has worked in the Gulf at senior level for many years, are among a limited number of specialists worldwide who are qualified to use the Kozai
Howe-Walsh explained: “This project will investigate developing Arab women entering the science and technology professions in the Middle East and explore the wider career progression implications for women working in these fields.
“It builds upon existing information on the range of positive traits and qualities seen in women in positions of global leadership, and acknowledges that the challenges faced by female Arab leaders differ from those faced by female leaders in Western countries.“
Group’s Global Competencies Index (GCI). The GCI index is a psychometric instrument designed to assess an individual’s current global competence and examines personal qualities associated with effectiveness in intercultural situations including perception management, relationship management and self management.
THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE – SOLENT & SOUTH CENTRAL – SEPTEMBER 2012
To date, there have been no focused investigations of the nature of global competencies in Arab women, but female leadership has been identified as a priority in the Middle East and many companies are seeking to develop and promote leadership roles for women in science and technology.
www.businessmag.co.uk
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