Skelmersdale-based third-party logistics


provider Kammac signed a new lease at the Walton Summit industrial estate in Preston. The 85,757 sq ft unit, taken on a ten-year lease, are the company’s ninth premises.


Preston-based AG Project + Building


Consultancy has been appointed to oversee Lancaster City Council’s redevelopment of the 1960s-era Mainway estate near the River Lune.


The University of Central Lancashire is


partnering with Preston-based Recycling Lives to create a process which converts scrap vehicle residue into renewable energy. Together they will work on using advanced thermal decomposition to convert Automotive Shredder Residue waste into energy and by- products with a variety of uses.


Burnley-based Birchall Foodservice commissioned a fleet of 33 vehicles from Solomon Commercials of Haslingden.


Chorley Group acquired two Citroen


dealerships from the BCC Cars group for an undisclosed sum. All employees and senior directors have been retained.


The Harris Museum, Art Gallery and


Library in Preston secured £803,249 of funding from the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sports, delivered by Arts Council England. This latest funding allows the project to extend the scope of existing regeneration works.


Praetura Asset Finance Group increased Baxi Heating teamed up with


Preston College to train local heating engineers on how to install and maintain environmentally-friendly air source heat pumps.


Catterall-based Collinson Construction has begun work refurbishing a former NHS building in Penrith into net zero carbon headquarters for Eden District Council.


Filtrox, the Switzerland-based specialist in


depth filtration of valuable liquids, is to expand its UK operation with the creation of 40 jobs. The company’s Barnoldswick site is already the largest in its global network, and this new investment plan will see capacity grow by a further 50 per cent over the next three years.


Lancaster-based Miralis Data is set


to create 30 jobs after receiving £1.7m funding to support Fuuse, its fast-growing


its securitisation funding facility with NatWest from £75m to £100m. The agreement will allow the two companies in the group, Praetura Asset Finance in Blackburn and Kingsway Finance in Cheshire, to increase its funding capacity available to SMEs.


A 21-hectare solar farm which will


help Lancaster University achieve net- zero status has been granted planning permission by Lancaster City Council.


Padiham-based housewares manufacturer


What More UK acquired Todmorden-based Canteen Smithy, a specialist toolmaker with a 35 year-history in precision mould manufacture and precision engineering.


A £19m regeneration scheme in Blackburn’s Griffin and Mill Hill areas has seen 138 new homes built over four sites. The development was overseen by the Great Places Housing Group and undertaken by Seddon Construction, R P Tyson Construction and Hargreaves Contracting.


DOWN Corporate insolvencies in the North


West of England jumped by 34 percent in the first quarter of 2022, as a series of compounding crises – from inflation and supply chain disruption to the impact of the conflict in Ukraine and the Covid pandemic – continue to place pressure on businesses.


Analysis of notices in The Gazette by Interpath Advisory reveals that a total of 47 companies based in the North West fell into administration between January and March 2022 – up from 35 in the same quarter last year.


Anthony Miller 48, from Blackburn, has been disqualified from becoming a company director for eight years after accepting a £50,000 Bounce Back Loan even though his company, Millers Commercial Refinishers, which was an automotive business based at Great Harwood, ceased trading in 2020.


The UK is experiencing its highest


level of inflation since the early 1990s. February’s inflation reached 6.2 per cent, which increased to seven per cent in March. Suren Thiru, head of economics at the British Chambers of Commerce, said rising costs are likely to slow UK growth, calling on the government to provide assistance for individuals and SMEs.


A survey has shown mental health


is falling down employers’ agendas at “an alarming rate” after the pandemic. The annual health and wellbeing at work survey from the Chartered Institute of Professional Development (CIPD) shows awareness of mental health in the workplace has fallen by 20 per cent in the last two years, while training for managers to support staff with mental ill health and for employee coping mechanisms have both fallen in 2022.


electric vehicle charging platform. The seed funding has been provided by Par Equity, backed by a syndicate of angel investors led by SaaS entrepreneur Kevin Beales.


Mark Gibbons


Senior access to finance specialist


@a2flancashire mark-gibbons-1643754b


DO RATIOS MATTER?


In a time of rising inflation, cost pressure, supply chain disruption and the energy crisis resulting from anything from Brexit, Covid-19, the Ever Given being lodged in the Suez Canal to shortages of HGV drivers and the recent invasion of Ukraine. All have had an impact on businesses and their bottom lines.


It has never been more critical for business owners to have a full and clear understanding of their financial position. Understanding and analysing your financial statements as a business owner is vital if you want to evaluate your performance and make changes based on your knowledge.


Small businesses can be agile and at their best when they plan and react quickly. One major achilles heel for small business is poor profitability. A business can succeed by knowing how to identify, track and act on profitability ratios and can determine whether your company will thrive or not -think of it as financial literacy.


Understanding an array of ratios can help business owners to ensure their company is efficient and on the correct path. These ratios can influence; decisions on which operations continue, changes in prices, choosing purchasing practices, considering bulk discounts and identifying where efficiencies can be improved in areas like material wastage.


Understanding operating profit margins highlights a business’ financial viability and core operations after variable production costs.


These ratios can demonstrate how the management team is running a business and track spending decision making.


Remember, financial ratios and the understanding of them will not be lost on investors and funders and will form a major part in their decision whether to invest or not.


For more information please visit a2flancashire.growthco.uk


or call 0808 196 5099


LANCASHIREBUSINESSVIEW.CO.UK


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