ABP investment streamlines grain handling at Immingham
Investment by ABP is streamlining the import of grain, with Viterra being amongst the first to use two metal plate bunds installed at Immingham.
The bunds can be set up on any quay on any surface, and can also be sanitised between vessel discharges meaning grain for human consumption can be handled. Operations are using the new Liebherr 420 mobile harbour cranes, which means faster and more time efficient handling.
Simon Bird, Regional Director of the Humber ports said: “This is a cost-effective method of ensuring we can load on to any quay in inner dock. It’s a developed and proven capability for operations to receive and load human consumption grains, which is part of our key competitiveness.
“ABP is keen to support our customers and we’re delighted that one of the first to use the new grain handling facility is Viterra, one of the UK’s leading grain marketers. The Humber is a key player in the market and our continued investment into infrastructure and equipment maintains our agility and resilience.”
Globally, Viterra is a world leading agriculture network, active in 37 countries worldwide, marketing more than 100 million metric tonnes of agricultural commodities per year. The company renewed its relationship with ABP Humber in April 2022 with the opening of a new 35,000 mt storage facility located on the ABP Humber International Terminal. This is complemented by additional storage within ABP’s Bulk Park facility located within the Port of Immingham.
Viterra UK MD James Maw said: “These combined investments provide the necessary storage for Viterra’s expanding import & export business, serving farmers and processors throughout Central and Eastern England,”
“The Panamax berth capability, combined with the excellent road network around Immingham will further add to the range and quality of services that Viterra provides to its customers.”
City council considers funding to refurbish shopping landmark
Hull City Council’s Cabinet will consider giving the green light to a £1.4m project to repair and renovate Hepworth’s Arcade.
The scheme will see essential repairs to the historic and much-loved shopping parade, addressing damp and a backlog of maintenance, such as renovating the promenade flooring and repairing internal stonework. It will also be fully redecorated.
The project will also improve the quality of the retail units to attract new businesses in a bid to fill empty units.
In turn, this will bring further local jobs and increase the diversity of high-quality retail available and boost footfall in the area.
Most of the overall cost of the project iwill come from the council’s Capital Programme, with additional grants being sought from external funders in support of this Grade II listed Victorian building.
Cllr Paul Drake-Davis, portfolio holder for regeneration at Hull City Council, said: “Hepworth’s Arcade is a Grade II listed building and a much loved and admired retail destination in Hull’s Old Town. Owning the facility, the council has a responsibility to keep it well-maintained and in good condition for future generations.
“Hepworth’s Arcade is home to a mix of bespoke, independent retailers and this investment will complement the amazing work done next door to make Trinity Market so popular and enjoyable.
“This funding from the council’s Capital Programme, alongside potential match funding from Historic England, will help reinvigorate Hepworth’s Arcade and ensure it remains a popular destination for both residents and visitors to our city centre.
“As part of the work plan, the council will involve existing tenants in a bid to limit the disruption to their businesses and ensure the success of the project.”
Packaging rethink cuts carbon emissions at Hull-based Arco
Hull-based safety equipment specialist Arco has successfully reduced its carbon emissions and plastic use by adopting a more circular approach to the packaging for its products.
It has introduced mailing bags made from 80% recycled polythene to achievea 35% reduction in the amount of plastic used across its operations. Their production of the 400,000 mailing bags it uses every year has been relocated from China to Europe, resulting in an estimated carbon emission saving of 38%.
Arco has also changed to a new ‘void fill solution’, to improve the sustainability of packaging which protects products in transit. The new alternative provides a further 13% reduction in plastic usage and carbon emissions and results in 17% less waste. Arco’s overarching sustainability aim is to be carbon net zero by 2045.
Jim Harbidge, Head of Sustainability at Arco, said: “The introduction of these changes is a small, but important step that we have taken in support of our sustainability aims and is part of a planned approach to ensure we are carbon net-zero by 2045.
“We would like to thank our packaging supplier, Hazel 4D, for their advice and support in identifying and implementing these changes.
“As a responsible choice of safety partner, we are committed to taking action to reduce climate-related impacts and are focussed on wider sustainability opportunities that we can bring forward, including how we support our local communities.”
Arco’s new packaging has been developed in collaboration with Leeds-based packaging supplier Hazel 4D. The fifth-generation family business has worked with the packaging consultancy for several years, including on a previous project that reduced its plastic usage in pallet wrapping by 55%.
Health & employment scheme Working Win secures further £5.9m funding
Following discussions with Government to stop the trailblazing Working Win scheme from being scrapped, South Yorkshire’s Mayor Oliver Coppard has announced grant funding to keep it going for a further two years, helping thousands of people with health conditions find or stay in work.
The programme has already supported more than 6,500 people in South Yorkshire. Through the new funding, it’s expected that a further 3,000 people with physical or mental health conditions will be supported until March 2025.
South Yorkshire’s Mayor Oliver Coppard, who also chairs the region’s Integrated Care Partnership, has welcomed the new funding as part of his commitment to address the region’s health inequalities.
South Yorkshire’s Mayor Oliver Coppard said: “When I was elected as South Yorkshire’s Mayor, I said I’d do what I could to make South Yorkshire the healthiest region in the country, and Working Win is a great example of how we’re working to tackle health inequalities in South Yorkshire.
“Too many people are held back by poor health in South Yorkshire, and are unable to stay in work or find new jobs. Working Win has been genuinely life-changing for thousands of people here, so I’m so really pleased our campaigning efforts have paid off and it’s been given further funding to keep going, and will now help thousands more people in South Yorkshire.”
The new funding, secured by the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority (SYMCA), is part of the Individual Placement and Support in Primary Care (IPSPC) initiative. The aim of the IPSPC initiative is to promote inclusive growth by helping to achieve a reduction in health inequalities through supporting people to access employment.
The £5.9 million IPSPC grant will mean that the current instalment of the Working Win programme, which has provided support since April 2018, can continue to benefit participants until June 2023. In July 2023, the delivery of the new grant programme will commence, for which an open procurement process will be announced soon.
Richard Stubbs, chair of the South Yorkshire Local Enterprise Partnership, said: “Fifteen million days of work a year are lost due to stress, anxiety and depression alone. This leads to businesses losing productivity and causes reduced quality of life for individuals. Working Win can help by supporting those out of work or off sick with free coaching to get them to a better place in their employment journey. This brings benefits to them, to employers and to the wider community.”
New development on Daisy Hill in Dewsbury approved
Kirklees Council’s Cabinet have approved work on another prominent building in Daisy Hill, in Dewsbury.
Daisy Hill is one of the key areas the council are developing as part of the ambitious Dewsbury Blueprint. The council are creating a new neighbourhood in this area made up of homes which are both “excellent quality” and affordable to rent or buy.
Once the new neighbourhood is finished, it’ll feature both brand new buildings and older converted structures – like this one.
Cabinet have approved work on the building at 6-10 Westgate. The four storey site is made up of two commercial units on the ground floor with lots of space to create new homes above.
Above the commercial spaces, the council will be creating three new one-bed homes and one two-bed. Two new traditional shopfronts will also be installed and some of the building’s original stone features will be brought back to life.
This work will follow the development of Fieldhouse, soon to be Station Apartments, the flagship of the new Daisy Hill neighbourhood. Plans for Fieldhouse’s development were approved by Cabinet last year, and work is due to start within the next few months.
The council will be working with Saleem Holdings on the development of 6-10 Westgate, who have already been closely involved in putting together the Cabinet proposal, and are contributing £240k funding to the project.
As well as the investment by developer, Saleem Holdings, this work is also funded by both £671k from the Dewsbury Revival Grant Scheme – part of the government’s Towns Fund – and a £280k grant from Historic England’s Heritage Action Zones (HAZ).
Daisy Hill was awarded HAZ status in 2017, which means that Historic England considered the area to be ‘at risk’ and in need of urgent action to protect its history. It’s also part of the Dewsbury Town Centre Conservation Area.
Councillor Eric Firth, Cabinet Member for Transport and Dewsbury Ward Councillor, says: “This project fits perfectly within our aspirations for the Dewsbury Blueprint. The Blueprint is about creating a better, more vibrant and varied town centre for both residents and businesses, and breathing new life into areas that have seen better days.
“We’re very excited to work with Saleem Holdings on this development, as I know they’re as invested in the project – and in Dewsbury’s future – as we are.
“With work on Fieldhouse, the flagship of this new neighbourhood, due to start within months, we’ll be starting to see Daisy Hill in a new light very soon.”
Lloyds Banking Group takes almost 124,000 sq ft of space at Leeds’ Wellington Place
In one of the largest office lettings in Yorkshire for several years, Lloyds Banking Group has selected Wellington Place as its new Leeds base.
Lloyds will take almost 124,000 sq ft of space at 11 & 12 Wellington Place.
The banking giant employs 4,200 people in Leeds who will begin to relocate from their current base at Lovell Park at the end of the year, with the transition complete by spring 2024.
Sharon Doherty, chief people and places officer at Lloyds Banking Group, said: “It’s a key part of our strategy to have the right spaces in the right places and we want everyone to love being in our offices. This means having the right facilities, tech and spaces as well as meeting our sustainability commitments, which are a critical part of our purpose of Helping Britain Prosper.
“Leeds continues to be an important hub for Lloyds Banking Group and our new offices will help us to work brilliantly together and attract new diverse talent into our organisation.”
Paul Pavia, head of development at MEPC, said: “As one of the UK’s largest financial services organisations, we are thrilled that Lloyds Banking Group has chosen Wellington Place as its new Leeds home.
“This is a landmark deal for the Yorkshire market and at more than 120,000 sq ft is the largest office letting in the region in recent years.
“The 11 & 12 Wellington Place development has set a new standard for sustainable development in Yorkshire and beyond. Lloyds is committed to environmental sustainability and its decision to move to 11 & 12 Wellington Place is evidence of this. Lloyds was also attracted to our extensive amenity offer and our programme of social value and community activities.
“We are very much looking forward to welcoming Lloyds and its people to the neighbourhood later this year.”
MEPC recently announced that Wates Construction, which has delivered 11 & 12 Wellington Place, has reached practical completion on the buildings.
Lloyds will join employee-owned consultancy Arup at 11 & 12 Wellington Place, with further announcements expected on other new occupiers shortly.
Acquiring agents on the deal were Jeff Pearey, head of UK regional office agency and Yorkshire / North East regions at JLL, Alex Hailey, senior director, CBRE, Paul Fairhurst, head of Leeds office, Savills.
New development site hits the market at heart of historic gateway to Leeds
A new plot of land at the heart of a key sustainable regeneration scheme has come to the market this week.
Meadow Lane in Leeds, which sits at an historic gateway to the city centre, and forms a vital piece of the new multi-million pound city centre green space, Aire Park, offers potential developers the option to deliver an architecturally unique building, housing a mix of predominately residential units.
The 0.18 hectare plot is well connected, in the heart of the South Bank and only five minutes from Leeds railway station, the busiest transport hub in the north of England.
Councillor James Lewis, leader of Leeds City Council, said: “South Bank, Leeds has taken huge strides in terms of regeneration of the area over the last decade, from both the regeneration of key heritage and industrial assets, to bringing forward the largest city centre green space in the UK, and in turn creating well connected and sustainable neighbourhoods.
“The city is going through momentous change and the council is committed to continuing to help unlock major commercial and residential development across the South Bank and the centre of Leeds. This is one example of where we have been able to release a prime piece of city centre land, for better use and to continue to build upon this excellent and vibrant community.”
Cushman & Wakefield are marketing the site on behalf of the council.
Renewables firms travel to Denmark for talks about collaboration
A group of businesses from the renewables and ports and logistics sectors are to meet their counterparts in the Danish port of Esbjerg next month for talks on opportunities for collaboration in the renewable energy and ports and logistics supply chain.
The port of Esbjerg is the leading port for offshore wind in the Continental North Sea, is the base of the Danish offshore wind industry, and an international hub for multimodal transport with six regular RoRo liner services. It handles approximately 4.5 million tonnes of cargo, ships out 1000 – 1500 MW of offshore wind capacity, and facilitates the import of around, 50,000 cars. All major companies in the offshore wind industry are present at the port, that is home to 200 companies employing approximately, 10,000 people, covering more than 4 million square meters and is the largest port in Denmark. The visit is being coordinated by Eastern Airway, Port of Esbjerg and Good Travel Management, part of the John Good Group, and supported by Humber-Marine-Renewables and Hull City Council. Participating companies will travel to Esbjerg on 19th April, on the recently launched Eastern Airways service from Humberside Airport.Build programme enters final phase at Bradford’s One City Park
The build programme for One City Park, Bradford’s first new high quality office development in 20 years, is continuing at pace as the project team led by nationwide placemaker, Muse, in partnership with Bradford Council and lead contractor Caddick Construction remain confident that the development is on track to complete summer 2023.
The striking glass and steel scheme will create 56,403 sq ft of sustainable office space across five floors. The steel frame – supplied and erected by Halifax-based Elland Steel – was completed in November and the aluminium cladding system which frames the floor to ceiling windows is well underway.
Externally, the retaining wall in front of the building has been demolished and work has begun on constructing new Spanish steps which will link the building to the mirror pool and provide an attractive setting for people to meet, sit and enjoy the views over City Park – which is set to play a major role in the district’s UK City of Culture programme in 2025.
Simon Dew, development director at Muse, added: “The skills and specialist knowledge of our extraordinary build team is enabling us to deliver this landmark scheme for the city on track which is an incredible achievement. We’ve had a strong stream of enquiries from potential occupiers – a confident sign that the demand for a modern, high specification office scheme in the city is there.
“Bradford is a place where start-ups and growing SMEs can thrive, and that major corporates have proudly called their home for hundreds of years. The district has always cultivated an entrepreneurial spirit – and we hope that One City Park will become home to the next generation of innovators who will choose to live and work in the city, attracted by the opportunity to fulfil their potential here.”
The scheme has been designed with modern businesses in mind, with flexible floor plates that can adapt to accommodate more agile working practices that promote wellbeing, and strong sustainability credentials.
In line with Bradford Council’s ‘Clean Growth Strategy’, which is ensuring that development in the city is sustainable, clean, environmentally regenerative and socially inclusive, One City Park will feature a range of green design elements including high-performance glazing, photovoltaic panels and air source heat pumps to make sure the building operates on renewable energy.
Every car-parking space includes an electric car charging point, coupled with secure cycle storage and changing facilities to encourage workers to take more sustainable and healthier modes of transport.
Paul Dodsworth, Managing Director at Caddick Construction, added: “There’s a huge demand for high quality, multipurpose commercial space in Bradford and Muse is leading the region by bringing to market this exciting new development. It’s a true testament to our team’s commitment and dedication that we’re on track to deliver this fantastic project on time.
“Creating places where businesses and their people can thrive is important to every commercial build that we deliver, and that’s why we’re working hard to ensure our sustainability target of BREEAM Excellent is met and this flagship scheme provides a market-leading environmentally conscious space.”
The building will feature a panoramic roof terrace offering superb views of the many civic and cultural buildings that surround City Park including City Hall, St George’s Hall and new music venue, Bradford Live, which is currently undergoing a multi-million-pound transformation, as well as bars, restaurants and cafes. It will also complement other major capital developments in the city including the £23m Darley Street Market scheme.
Councillor Alex Ross-Shaw, Bradford Council’s Executive Member for Regeneration Planning and Transport, said: “One City Park entering the final phase of its construction marks an exciting moment in the district’s continual transformation and really complements the wider regeneration of the city centre including the new Darley Street Market and the progress being made with the City Village at the top of town. It’s a measure of our ambition for continual growth in the district.”
Sheffield Forgemasters makes flood prevention land purchase
Sheffield Forgemasters has purchased a 400m2 parcel of land adjacent to the River Don to install a high powered pumping station to prevent flooding.
The site, located on the junction between Brightside Lane and Weedon Street, will house a water pumping station to connect Bagley Brook, which runs through a culvert beneath the company’s site into the River Don, dramatically reducing the brook’s liability to breach.
The initiative is part of the company’s site-wide recapitalisation programme, which will see significant investment in defence critical assets, and is predicted to radically reduce the burden on the Victorian culvert, which has been a point of flooding at Brightside Lane.
Steve Marshall, manufacturing transformation director at Sheffield Forgemasters, said: “The new pumping station will make a vast difference to issues which have previously caused flooding at Brightside Lane, protecting our site and reducing the volume of water that can breach onto public road surfaces.
“Bagley Brook feeds into the River Don from an underground culvert through our site and during high water levels in the River the outlet of the culvert is closed off, causing it to surcharge and back up. The pumping station will allow the water to flow in a flood event therefore preventing the brook from breaching.”
The pumping station will be sunk into a seven metre concrete pit, 10 metres wide and 11 long, housing three pumps capable of pumping 240,000 litres of water per minute to relieve the burden on the culvert in flood-risk conditions.
Steve added: “We have already secured planning permission to go ahead with the pumping station, which we see as a major step forward in flood-risk mitigation.
“In the 2007 flood, our site was primarily affected by the River Don bursting its banks, but in 2019, following work to heighten the river wall, floodwaters entered our site’s northern edge when Bagley Brook was too full to flow through the culvert.
“As we progress with the programme to recapitalise our operations, flood prevention has become an integral part of our plans and should remove any chance of the business being threatened by extreme flood occurrences.”
The pumping station will complement a range of other flood prevention measures at Sheffield Forgemasters, including revisions to drainage and new, higher-based buildings to house plant.
Work is expected to start on the pumping station early in 2024.
