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Hampshire businesses – batting for the county
Hampshire businesses are hoping for a share of contracts worth millions of pounds after an annual business matchmaking day at the Ageas Bowl.
The seventh South Hampshire Meet the Buyers day, run by a local authority partnership and delivered by Hampshire Chamber of Commerce, brought dozens of companies face-to-face with major buyers of business services. A similar event held in 2012 generated deals worth an estimated £6.25 million.
This year’s event was opened by Hampshire’s newest MP, Mike Thornton, recently elected in Eastleigh. He said: “The number of organisations coming to this event shows just how friendly Hampshire is for business. This is a great example of a chamber of commerce, businesses and local authorities all working together to create jobs and investment.“
Among the buyers this year were blue chips such as Babcock, Exxon Mobil and Lockheed Martin together with well-established Hampshire names including Vitacress, Simplyhealth and Sparsholt College. Suppliers came from engineering, manufacturing, telecoms, construction, marketing, printing, cloud computing technology and other sectors.
Natasha Curry, general manager of Hampshire building firm Lifetime Construction, said: “We’ve been coming to this event for the past five years and each year we have won business afterwards. The face-to-face contact with procurement managers is a great way to grow relationships with existing clients and pick up new business. It helps you understand
At the Ageas Bowl for Meet the Buyers are (from left): Jimmy Chestnutt; Mike Thornton; Bernie Topham, chief executive of Eastleigh Borough Council; and Derek Chartres, Hampshire Chamber chairman
what work contracts are available and coming up.“
The South Hampshire Meet the Buyers Partnership holds the event annually with Hampshire Chamber acting as organiser. The partnership was joined for the first time this year by Portsmouth City Council. The other authorities involved are Hampshire County Council, New Forest District Council, Eastleigh Borough Council, Test Valley Borough Council and Winchester City Council.
Ian Bridges, business services manager at Portsmouth City Council, said: “It was great to see companies big and small attending an event that is so valuable to the regional supply chain.“
Jimmy Chestnutt, Hampshire Chamber chief executive, said: “The venue was a very apt backdrop for an event that is truly batting for Hampshire.“
In collaboration with Southampton Solent University,
It’s a bright forecast for start-ups
The annual Duport Business Confidence Report for Southampton reveals that 2012 was a record year for company formations in the city, with 2,304 new companies formed during the course of the year, the highest year on record for Southampton and a 4% rise on the previous year.
Managing director of Duport.
co.uk, Peter Valaitis, said: “Our latest report shows a positive trend for business start-ups in Southampton, with numbers rising every year since 2008. Company closures fell during the year, suggesting trading conditions may be improving in the city.“
THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE – SOLENT & SOUTH CENTRAL – MAY 2013
the event featured a bespoke software package for matching suppliers to buyers. It was built by the University’s creative agency, Solent Creatives, under a business support project called 5+5.
Power station shuts down
A familiar landmark, oil-fired Fawley Power Station, has closed after 40 years.
The power station, on the western side of Southampton Water, was considered state of the art when commissioned in 1971, but now falls foul of EU emission rules and had to close by 2015.
The decommissioning and demolition of the plant is expected to take several years. However, the future of the site remains undecided.
RWE npower said: “We are considering a range of options for the future of the site, and in 2011 announced that we were investigating the possibility of developing a new distillate oil-fired open cycle gas turbine (OCGT) plant at Fawley. We have decided not to progress these plans at present, but continue to review our options.“
BRAIN TUMOURS KILL MORE CHILDREN AND MORE ADULTS UNDER 40 THAN ANY OTHER CANCER
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