NASDAQ-listed Otonomo moves for Sheffield business
A cash and shares deal worth up to $69m (£51m) has been agreed for the acquisition of a Sheffield-based telematics technology specialist which works with prominent insurers across the world.
The Floow, founded in 2012 and a Queen’s Award winner in 2016, is being acquired by NASDAQ-listed Otonomo Technologies, an Israel-headquartered business which is behind a platform and marketplace for vehicle data.
Since its incorporation, The Floow has built a portfolio of connected insurance clients, alongside strategic partnerships with Munich Re and TransUnion.
The company’s data refinery platform enables insurance carriers to introduce “connectivity” to their products and differentiate their offerings through a more precise understanding of risk in the context of personalised products and services, improved road safety through driver coaching and timely, accurate roadside assistance.
The combination of the two is expected to integrate The Floow’s vehicle insurance tools, built in partnership with insurance companies, with Otonomo’s mobility intelligence platform built on OEM vehicle data.
The deal is worth an initial $31.5m (£23.5m) based on a share price of $2.75. Otonomo may issue additional cash and stock of up to $37.5m (£28m) dependent upon achievement of certain business performance objectives.
Peter Crawford, Lisa Wallis and Victoria Price from Freeths’ corporate team advised The Floow and certain of its shareholders on the transaction. They were supported by specialists from Freeths’ tax, competition, employment and real estate teams.
Peter Crawford said: “Having acted for The Floow since start-up in 2012, we are very pleased to have been involved in this transaction, which is sure to be transformative for the company and the incredible team of people behind it. We are looking forward to seeing The Floow continue to thrive and prosper in the years to come.”
The acquisition is subject to approval by UK regulators and is expected to close within the second quarter of 2022.
“Together, we believe Otonomo and The Floow will create the opportunity for both OEMs and insurance companies to accelerate the utilization of their data, create new products, improve customer experiences and accelerate business transformation,” said Ben Volkow, CEO of Otonomo. “We are pleased to be joining forces with The Floow’s CEO Aldo Monteforte, a visionary in his field, and the entire team.”
“I could not be prouder to announce we are joining the Otonomo team. This is a big, bold step that brings us closer to our vision of safer and smarter mobility for all,” said The Floow’s CEO, Aldo Monteforte. “Our clients and partners, some of the leading insurers of the world, will have access to a significant and unique set of data products, tools and resources to help them compete and thrive in a connected new world ahead.”
Belvoir acquires estate agency in £200,000 deal
Belvoir, the property franchise group with its central office in Grantham, has acquired Mr and Mrs Clarke Limited (MMC) for £0.2 million.
MMC was founded in 2015 by Paul and Alex Clarke, offering a specialist concierge-style personal estate agency model through a national network of 10 licensed partners, predominantly in Warwickshire, South Wales, the Midlands and North London.
Executive directors Paul and Alex Clarke, will continue to manage the business as part of Belvoir.
Dorian Gonsalves, CEO of Belvoir, said: “The acquisition of Mr and Mrs Clarke provides the Group with a new service offering, which will recognise the breadth of ways in which our customers want to interact with their estate agent and the different ways in which potential new franchisees or partners want to operate.
“Paul and Alex have created a really positive, vibrant brand that stands out from the crowd. The future success of their business will benefit from the credibility that the Belvoir Group can bring and we extend a warm welcome to the MMC team, and look forward to working alongside their partners to further strengthen the business’s growth potential.”
Paul Clarke, Managing Director, Mr and Mrs Clarke, said: “Dorian understood our vision from the word go, making this acquisition a natural step in the evolution of our business. The brokerage style business model is one which is becoming increasingly popular in the UK, especially in our new flexible working era.
“The opportunities arising from being part of a Group that is so experienced in estate agency, lettings, franchising and financial services, are extremely exciting for our partners, and we will be grabbing the opportunity with both hands to exceed our plans for further national business growth.”
Work to begin on £6m Hull highways upgrade to drive Priory Park investment and create jobs
A major highways improvement project will begin this month on Priory Way, paving the way for further development of the Priory Park East business park.
There are six remaining sites to develop on Priory Park East, in west Hull, with four proposed schemes identified for development.
Development of the remaining sites is expected to lead to private sector investment of up to £25million, up to 15,600m2 of new commercial floor space and the creation of up to 280 jobs. Approximately 8.5 acres of the remaining 12 acres of land is within Enterprise Zones.
As part of the £6million Priory Way scheme, the highway will be widened in order to increase capacity and accommodate the additional traffic that the development sites are expected to create.
The project has been supported with £1,439,899 from the Government’s Local Growth Fund, which was secured by the Hull and East Yorkshire LEP as part of the Government’s commitment to the Northern Powerhouse.
The Priory Way work includes:
- An additional northbound lane between Saxon Way and Sainsbury Way, allowing two ahead lanes and a dedicated right-turn lane into Henry Boot Way.
- An additional southbound lane approaching the junction of Sainsbury Way, allowing two ahead lanes and a dedicated right-turn lane into Sainsbury Way.
- An additional southbound lane between Henry Boot Way and Saxon Way, allowing two ahead lanes and a dedicated right-turn lane into Saxon Way.
- A new shared-use path for pedestrians and cyclists.
- New traffic islands for safer pedestrian/cyclist crossing.
- Improved traffic signals and pedestrian crossings.
Time Out: Ben Roberts, marketing director, Roberts Mart
The weekend has come back around again, and that means some more quickfire questions. This ‘Time Out’ features Ben Roberts, the marketing director of Roberts Mart, the Leeds-based flexible packaging specialist which is celebrating its 170th anniversary this year.
What is the first thing you do to get the weekend started?
It depends on the time of the year, but usually either a quick run around my home town of Harrogate or take my son Jonty to football training.
What is your hobby?
Running! It can be done anytime anywhere, all you need is a pair of trainers.
What is your favourite movie?
It’s a close toss up between Goodfellas and Once Were Warriors.
If you hadn’t been successful at what you do, what would you be doing instead as a career?
I always wanted to be an architect but now I have a burning desire to be a carpenter.
If you could have any superpower what would it be?
I wish I had superspeed so that I could run further in the same amount of time!
What is your favourite genre of music?
Hard rock and heavy metal. I have always been a big fan of The Wildhearts.
If you could travel to any moment in time where would you go?
Probably watching Darren Gough playing cricket for England at Headingley, pure theatre.
Calibre Search turnover hits £5.5 million
Calibre Search has reported revenues of £5.5 million, with a surge in early stage construction driving growth.
The Leeds headquartered recruitment company specialises in the built environment, HVAC, IT and marketing and is on course to register revenues of £6.6m in 2022, a £2m increase on its 2020 turnover figure.
Its Manchester staff have also moved into a new 1,461 sq ft Northern Quarter base and will introduce 10 further specialist recruiters by the end of the year.
Pete Gillick, Director, Calibre Search, described the past several months as ‘the busiest period in the company’s history’, and predicted further growth in activity well into 2022 and beyond.
It comes after new construction orders rose by 9.2% (£1,121m) in Q4 2021 compared with Q3 2021 – higher than the last full quarter not affected by the pandemic (Q4 2019), according to the Office for National Statistics.
New orders in Q4 2021 are also at their highest level since High Speed 2 affected Q3 2017.
“Part of our vision is to be the ‘go-to partner’ in the industries we service and I think we are achieving that,” said Pete.
“The demand for talent that we are seeing from our large corporation and SME clients is similar to the economic boom of 2005 / 06,” said Pete.
“While 2020 was tough, we bounced back very quickly. Many of our clients are at the earlier stages of construction and can’t find the right people themselves which continues to drive opportunities.”
Calibre Search’s clients include the biggest names in the built environment space; with many saying they can’t respond quickly enough to big jobs, according to Pete.
“It’s across the board,” he said. “We recruit for roles including engineering consultants, construction professionals, environmental scientists, architects, planners and hydrologists and are seeing more corporate activity than we’ve ever seen before. And it’s not just the private sector.
“You can’t drive anywhere without seeing roadworks at the moment, housing is taking off and there’s a lot of work in flood defence. The challenge is finding the talent to fill the gaps. But we’ve never been this busy and we have a superb team and hope to recruit more of the same quality.”
On Calibre’s recent move across Manchester’s Northern Quarter, from The Landmark building on back Turner Street to the newly refurbished 19th century building Nine Stephenson Square, Pete said: “We are finding that after an initial drive of people wanting to work from home that some now want to leave the house more often. That has led us to investing in a much improved and newly refurbished office space which offers the highest quality environment when it comes to the experience of coming to work.
“We will be doubling headcount from seven to at least 14 in the next 12 months and have the capacity to grow to over 20 staff in Manchester.”
Plans progress for 2.26m sq ft phase of Doncaster industrial scheme
Wilton Developments has unveiled plans for the first 2.26m sq ft phase of its Doncaster North industrial and logistics scheme, which includes the region’s largest stand-alone new build industrial unit currently in the planning system. Phase 1 at Doncaster North could facilitate some 8,500 new jobs for the region.
In January, Wilton Developments received Outline Planning consent from Doncaster Metropolitan Borough Council to transform 180 acres adjacent to Junction 6 of the M18 at Thorne, Doncaster into a 3.52 million sq ft logistics and industrial scheme.
A Reserved Matters planning application for the delivery of the first 2.26m sq ft phase of development has now been submitted and this will incorporate a 1m sq ft stand-alone distribution building, the only unit of its scale in the region to progress to that planning stage.
The remaining 1m sq ft in Phase 1 will primarily be made up of units ranging from 100,000 to 375,000 sq ft and the first phase can facilitate up to 8,500 jobs for the region including on-site jobs, construction roles and wider regional jobs following completion. A start on-site is scheduled for later this year with the first buildings due to be delivered in 2023.
Wilton Developments has appointed agents CBRE and Knight Frank to market the scheme, now named Doncaster North.
Jason Stowe, Managing Director of Wilton Developments, says: “We are progressing plans for this major employment site and subject to successful consent, Doncaster North will be the only scheme to bring forwards a 1m sq ft stand-alone unit in the region.
“A key feature of the site is that whilst sitting beside Junction 6 of the M18 and having that visibility, it is only a 5-minute drive to Junction 35 of the M62 which makes it appealing to a host of occupiers seeking both east west as well as north south connectivity.
“We are looking forward to continuing our investment into South Yorkshire and delivering much needed industrial accommodation and jobs to the region.”
Contractor appointed to demolish buildings at Myton Retail Park
A contractor has been appointed to carry out the demolition of two buildings at Myton Retail Park and extend the existing car park onto the cleared site.
Hull City Council has published a decision record confirming the awarding of the contract to PBS Construction Limited for the sum of £175,939 after an open tender process in which bids were assessed on a ‘best value’ basis, combining price and quality.
The 2.7-acre retail park is located on Myton Street/Ferensway.
The buildings set for demolition are the former American Golf and Maplin buildings.
The existing car park will be extended by 34 spaces, taking the total number of spaces to 166.
Hull City Council’s Streetscene team will operate the car park as a pay and display public car park for which planning consent has been granted.
Councillor Daren Hale, Leader of Hull City Council, said: “The Myton Retail Park was acquired by the council last year as a strategic gateway site that will open the door for future development.
“In the meantime, the proposed works will reduce the council’s holding costs and also generate car park income.”
Works will commence soon and is expected to take around 6-8 weeks.
Quickline doubles team in two months
Rural broadband specialists, Quickline Communications, has welcomed its 100th employee as the company enters a rapid growth period following its acquisition by Northleaf Capital last summer.
The appointment means Quickline has doubled its team in the last 6 months – and they expect to double it again over the coming year.
Sean Royce, CEO at Quickline said: “This is a key moment as we welcome our 100th employee to the Quickline family. It’s such an exciting time for us. With Northleaf’s half a billion pounds investment over the next four years, it means we will be creating hundreds of new jobs across the region.
“It’s our mission to level up the huge digital divide that exists between rural communities and urban areas and we’re doing that by building an innovative hybrid network to reach 500,000 rural premises across the North of England. So on top of Quickline jobs, there are even more opportunities for sub-contracted jobs for various projects as new masts and full fibre network builds are rolled out.”
The company’s 100th employee, Martin Cook, is Quickline’s new Director of Financial Planning and Analysis. He said:
“I didn’t realise the significance of my appointment when I started but I am thrilled to be working at a company with so many opportunities. That’s what attracted me to Quickline in the first place. I’ve had such a great welcome in my first week from all members of the team and I am looking forward to getting stuck in to do my part for the the business and for our customers.”
Meanwhile, Andris Uplejs, who joined the company in 2011 as network manager, is one of Quickline’s longest-serving employees and has risen through the ranks to become Head of New Infrastructure. He said:
“I honestly have no idea where the time has gone. Joining Quickline was the best decision I have ever made. There’s a great culture here which has allowed me to learn and grow as a person. The support from the team at every level has also been invaluable. When you join Quickline, you join a family who pull together – and I am so proud to be part of Quickline’s success story and look forward to the next chapter.”
LBA withdraws application for terminal replacement
Leeds Bradford Airport has announced it is withdrawing its planning application for a replacement terminal building following excessive delays and the decision to call in plans by the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities.
With large investment in the scheme so far, airport bosses say they are not prepared to commit a further uncapped sum over an indefinite timeframe into a public inquiry process when their focus needs to be on modernising the airport for the future.
The airport will instead turn its attention to developing the extension to the existing terminal, originally approved by Leeds City Council in 2019, to enable it to meet the rapidly increasing passenger demand as the aviation sector recovers from the pandemic.
The replacement terminal plans, which would have delivered a purpose designed, BREEAM excellent rated terminal building, were about meeting demand already approved under the 2019 consent in a more sustainable way, allowing the airport to achieve its environmental targets more quickly within an ambitious new development.
LBA remains committed to delivering its 2030 Carbon Net Zero Roadmap and to creating a modern, decarbonised regional UK airport within the extension scheme.
Vincent Hodder, CEO of Leeds Bradford Airport, said: “It is with regret that we have made the decision to withdraw LBA’s application for the development of a new replacement terminal.
“As the travel and aviation industry continues to recover from the impacts of the pandemic, LBA needs to be able to respond to rapidly increasing demand within the next few years.
“I would like to thank everyone who has supported us in the planning process, from the general public to the business community and councils across Yorkshire. Whilst this is a setback for our airport and region, we remain committed to investing in LBA to be an outstanding, decarbonised, modern airport for the future.”
“My team and I are optimistic about the recovery from the pandemic and about the future of Leeds Bradford Airport”
Manufacturer offers vital solution to businesses facing difficulty from CO2 shortage
UK beverage manufacturers using CO2 during the production process can safeguard their future, mitigate supply issues, and ensure their products make it onto store shelves through the addition of an innovative solution-based carbonation aid that enhances the end product.
A Yorkshire-based manufacturing business that specialises in keeping carbonated drinks fizzier for longer is offering a vital business lifeline to soft drinks brands and manufacturers facing increasing costs arising from CO2 supply issues.
Experts at global business CO2Sustain, pioneers of the carbonation aid CO2 Sustain®, have seen an unprecedented 200% increase in enquiries since the start of this year after being inundated with requests for help as many soft drink manufacturers and bottling businesses look to protect dwindling carbon dioxide stocks. CO2 Sustain® enables manufacturers to use less CO2 in their carbonated drinks with their innovative bubble technology.
Less CO2 is required during the manufacturing and bottling processes enabling more beverage to be produced without using as much CO2, preserving valuable stocks of the gas as the shortage continues to worsen. CO2 Sustain® can enable manufacturers to make 10 – 15% more beverages from the same amount of CO2.
The clever carbonation technology ensures that the same carbonation sensory profile is achieved with less added CO2.
Scarce CO2 supplies continue to prompt fears of a soft drinks shortage and concerns in other priority areas such as healthcare and food manufacture, where CO2 is a vital resource.
Sources at CO2Sustain report that some customers in the UK soft drinks industry are now having to pay ever increasing prices for CO2.
CO2 Sustain has ramped up production of its patented carbonation aid, CO2 Sustain® fourfold in the first quarter of this year as soft drinks manufacturers look to make their CO2 supplies go further.
From its manufacturing base in Leeds, CO2Sustain’s team of technical innovations chemists developed the preservative-free carbonation aid to increase the carbon dioxide content and extend the carbonation shelf life of soft drinks, using an exclusive formulation.
Simply added during the manufacturing process, CO2 Sustain® works by discouraging bubbles from merging into larger bubbles. This controls foam during filling of bottles and increases the perception of fizziness in the finished beverage.
Jonathan Stott, business manager at CO2Sustain, said: “Increasingly we are seeing manufacturers actively looking to reduce the amount of CO2 used per beverage to make the amount they procure go further. They are also looking to reduce waste and in some cases find alternative gases where possible with the likelihood of CO2 supplies being prioritised for manufacturers in healthcare and food production sectors as the crisis escalates.
“This is a challenging time for UK beverage manufacturers. This is exacerbated by spiralling production costs including raw materials, labour, energy, transportation and delivery. CO2 Sustain® presents a viable business solution that has been specifically formulated to make sure drinks don’t lose carbonation and stay fizzy for longer, meaning less carbon dioxide is required in the first place and less is also wasted. This is proving to be a valuable business benefit for many of our customers, especially with the added uncertainty on global supplies and spiralling transportation costs. The availability of CO2 Sustain® is good news for the UK carbonated drinks market as it allows drinks manufacturers and brands to formulate their products by using up less of their CO2 reserves and ensure supply levels of their products can be maintained for retail.”
