Business Tuesday, October 14, 2014 Argus (Left- right) Glyn Thomas UKSE, David Perez Finance Wales and Hobbs Valve MD Rhys Jones


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Investment statistics reveal business boost


TATA subsidiary UK Steel Enterprise has revealed excel- lent results for investment into Welsh SME businesses in 2013/2014, including many in Gwent. Approved investments came


in at £664,000 for the year in companies across a wide spectrum of activities. These ranged from food producers to exporters of heavy industri- al equipment, helping to drive growth to create and safe- guard jobs in Wales. Working collaboratively with


other financial institutions in Wales, UKSE provides debt and equity packages for com- panies with growth potential. Hobbs Valve, of Caerphilly,


benefitted from a £100,000 investment from UKSE as part of a larger package, which is helping the company’s ambi- tious export drive in the oil, gas and petrochemical indus- tries in the Middle East, US, South America and the Far East. Hobbs is aiming to build turnover from the present £6 million to £15 million and


increase the workforce from 36 to 60 in three years. At the smaller end of the business spectrum, former steelworker Stephen Hobbs was assisted with a small loan to develop his log wood burner installa- tion business, Stephen Hobbs Fire and Flue. Celtic Recycling, of Newport,


received a £100,000 invest- ment aimed at helping to build its growing business recycling heavy electrical equipment from all around the world. Investment executive in


Wales Glyn Thomas said: “We enjoyed a very good year in 2013/14 making a series of strategic investments in Welsh businesses. Our brief as an organisation is to stimulate the economy and support growth and the creation of sustainable jobs. The range of companies we backed shows how diverse the modern Welsh economy has become, and how important it is to support companies speedily when opportunities arise.” Turn to page 5


Government support enables acclaimed irm’s expansion


REID Lifting – an award- winning Chepstowbusi- ness which designs and manufactures a range of lightweight portable gan- tries and cranes – is invest- ing £3.8 million in a new factory with Welsh Government support. Economy Minister Edwina


Hart,who visited the facility recently, announced the Welsh Government is provid- ing £680,000 business finance towards the projectwhich will safeguard existing jobs and see staff numbers rise from 21 to 38 over the next few years. The investment will enable


Reid Lifting,which is based onNewhouse Farm Industrial Estate, to expand into larger purpose designed premises providing greater capacity for both its current requirements and future growth. The need to expand is driv-


By Jo Barnes 01633 777240 jba@gwent-wales.co.uk Twitter @SWABusiness


en by growth of 15 per cent per annum over the last four years, and a further growth in orders of 30 per cent this year. The Minister said: “Reid Lifting is aWelsh success story. It has consistently invested in the development of a range of highly-innova- tive lifting gantrieswhich have been used by such diverse organisations as the Louvre and the Vatican and Rolls Royce and London Underground. “Iampleased to support their expansion inWales that will enable the company to continue with its growth plans, create skilled jobs, bring more business to its local supply chain and con-


cal and we are extremely grateful. This is a major investment for us and will help us sustain year on year growth of 20 per cent. Over the past four years our turno- ver has doubled to £3.5 mil- lion and we forecast doubling this figure again over the next four years.” Exports account for 45 per


Economy Minister Edwina Hart and managing director of Reid Lifting, Nick Battersby


tinue to expand its exports market.” Managing director Nick Battersby said: “This expan- sion is vitally important for our future growth as we cur- rently do not have the capac- ity to meet the growing


demand for our products. The new site will enable the company tomake improve- ments in manufacturing operations, increase efficien- cy and productivity. “Support from theWelsh Government has been criti-


cent of Reid Lifting’s sales with keys markets in the US, Australia, the Middle East andWestern Europe with noticeable growth in the UK. The company has won an incredible three Queen’s Awards for Enterprise – two last year for international trade and innovation and one in 2006, again for innovation. It was voted Company of


the Year at the Monmouthshire Business Awards 2013. Reid Lifting was also shortlisted in this year’sAward in the sustained growth category.


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Reid Lifting specialises in systems that can be deployed by one or two people quickly and ideal for use on hard to reach sites and difficult ter- rain. It has traditionally focused on the water indus- try, with a particular strength in utilities, the hire sector and personnel protec- tion applications. Their high profile custom-


ers include Jaguar Cars, Rolls Royce, London Underground, British Waterways and museums (British Museum, V&A, The Louvre and The Vatican). Reid Lifting operates from a 13,500 sq ft unit and is build- ing a new 45,000 sq ft factory on a four-acre site with plans to initially occupy 30,000 sq ft and let out the remaining 15,000 sq ft – providing room for future expansion.Work is due to start with a comple- tion date at the end of May and operational by July 2015.


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