Lincolnshire Chamber Chair to step down in December

Stuart Pearcey
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Lincolnshire Chamber Chair to step down in December
Lincolnshire Chamber of Commerce’s Gary Headland will step down as Chair of the Board at the company’s AGM in December this year. Gary, who recently resigned from his role as CEO at the Lincoln College Group as he took up a different position outside the county, has served as Chair since early 2019, when he took over from Ursula Lidbetter. He previously had been a member of the Board for some years. The Chamber is now looking for a new Chair to take over and lead the organisation forward supporting its vision of ‘supporting Lincolnshire businesses to grow and succeed’. Simon Beardsley, Chief Executive of the Lincolnshire Chamber, said: “We are forever grateful to Gary for all his hard work and support he has given us over the years, it really has been invaluable. “I encourage business leaders across all sectors to consider applying for this role, which brings with it a lot of exciting opportunities and the chance to really make a difference to the Lincolnshire business community. We wish Gary all the best in his future endeavours.”
Mr Headland said: “Whilst I am sad to be moving on, I have no doubt my successor will be able to continue the good work we are doing. I have thoroughly enjoyed my time as Chair of the Board and before that a non-executive director, and though of course there have been challenging times over the past two years with the pandemic, I feel the Chamber has come out stronger than ever. “Taking up the position of the Chair is a great opportunity to really help businesses, great and small, find their potential and grow with one common goal – making Lincolnshire a thriving place to live and work. “With heartfelt thanks to all Board members current and old, Simon, the Chamber team, and everyone who has supported me during my time here.”
“I have no doubt my successor will be able to continue the good work we are doing.”
If you are interested in applying for the position of Chair, interested parties are being asked to submit a CV and cover letter by 31st May with interviews set to take place on 10th June.

Almost 30 firms will attend South Holland jobs fair

Stuart Pearcey
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Almost 30 firms will attend South Holland jobs fair
Major employers, training providers and those looking for a new opportunity will come together at the Springfields Exhibition Centre in Spalding as South Holland District Council, in partnership with the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) and the Greater Lincolnshire LEP, hold its annual South Holland Jobs Fair. The Jobs Fair, on Friday 13 May, will be held in the Marquee Room in the Springfields Exhibition Centre, and will offer visitors the chance to engage with upwards of 27 employers and training providers from a number of exciting industries, with many great opportunities available. There will be representatives from the organisations on hand throughout the day, to provide information about their work and what vacancies, apprenticeships and training opportunities are available. Visitors will also be able to speak to staff from the DWP and ensure that they are receiving all the support that they are currently entitled to, as well as helpful recruitment advice. The employers and training providers attending the event will include: Bakkavor, Worldwide Fruit, Atlas Care, George Barnsdale, GBSG, Gousto, JDM, Lincolnshire Coop, South Holland District Council, Public Sector Partnership Services Ltd, Army Reserves, Spalding, Morrisons Abattoir, Steadfast Training, Boston College and more. Councillor Nick Worth, deputy leader and portfolio holder for people, places, economy said: “It’s great that we’re able to hold the ever-popular South Holland Jobs Fair again, and I am pleased to see that there is set to be a great turnout from local businesses across a variety of different sectors and job roles. “The Fair gives residents a chance to get out and learn more about some of the fantastic opportunities that are available across South Holland. I’d encourage people to come along, have a chat with our local employers and training providers, and hopefully find the perfect way to take the next step on their career development.”

World’s largest hydraulic crane arrives at Immingham

Stuart Pearcey
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World’s largest hydraulic crane arrives at Immingham
The world’s largest hydraulic crane has arrived at the Port of Immingham direct from the Mantsinen factory in Finland in a £3m investment by Associated British Ports. It was supplied by Cooper Specialised Handling Ltd, the UK’s leading independent port equipment supplier. Simon Bird, Regional Director for ABP Humber said: “The arrival of the Mantsinen crane marks another significant milestone in ABP’s ongoing investment programme to enhance and expand our offer. Across the Humber Ports we are investing around £32 million in cranes as part of a five-year programme to ensure we offer have the right equipment and infrastructure to support our customers and bring growth to the area.” A team from the Port of Immingham consisting of operations and engineers visited the Mantsinen factory in Finland last month to check on its build progress. It also gave them an opportunity to test the new crane simulator and see how it handles. Port operatives will now be trained in how to use the new model before it becomes operational. Launched in 2018, these super-sized machines now have the reach and capacity to serve Panamax size vessels and can handle as much as 1500 tonnes per hour – far greater than the rope crane equivalents. It also has sustainable technology in the Hybrilift energy storage and recovery system, which increases energy efficiency by up to 50%. The machine weighs in at 365 tonnes (without attachment) and is diesel powered by an EU stage 5 Volvo 16 litre diesel engine, which offers high performance but low fuel consumption and durability. ABP have opted for an 18.5m curved boom and 14m stick and the machine has a wheeled undercarriage of six axles with four wheels per axle, which provides for greater mobility, especially on uneven ground. The machine has come supplied with Mantsinen’s cab riser to enable the operator to position the cab in the optimum position over the hold to gain a direct line of sight. Supplied with a range of automatic and semi-automatic attachments, this reduces the need for direct labour in the holds thus enhancing safety further than if stevedores were slinging.

Number of firms in financial distress jumps by almost 20%

Stuart Pearcey
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Number of firms in financial distress jumps by almost 20%
The latest Begbies Traynor Red Flag Alert research reveals a 19% jump in the number of companies in critical financial distress with Government Covid support having ended  and costs spiralling. The most recent County Court Judgements (CCJs) data revealed 11,673 rulings in March – up 179% on the monthly average for the previous two years – and the highest level in a single month for five years. With companies struggling with rising inflation, coupled with the demands of repaying Government Covid support loans, there is now a growing risk of a wave of insolvencies affecting vulnerable British businesses. Julie Palmer, partner at Begbies Traynor, warns that unless there is action to allow struggling businesses to  mitigate the impact of these pressures, they risk being unable to continue to operate. She said: “The critical distress and CCJ data are likely predictors of a wave of insolvencies coming – it’s just a case of when the dam holding it back finally bursts. “The latest Government insolvency figures for March reinforce this worrying trend with creditors voluntary liquidations – the most common type of corporate insolvency – more than doubling compared to March 2021 and up 62% compared to March 2019 “The Government’s finances are themselves taking a hit from the increasing interest environment; they are simply not able to introduce further significant funding into the system, and they now have a choice to make. Do they rush to recover funds handed out during the pandemic to ensure there was a functioning economy afterwards? Or look for ways to control the number of businesses that fail? “Having put so much money into protecting businesses over the past two years, ministers won’t want to see it wasted as companies collapse, unable to repay their debts.” Ms Palmer said one way the Government could ease the pressure on embattled businesses while not writing off debts racked up through measures such as the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS) would be taking a longer-term view. She continued: “I’d expect low-cost forms of further support, probably through leniency in repaying pandemic funding. We could see an approach similar to war bonds, with terms being extended as ministers follow the adage that a rolling loan gathers no loss. “Taking a hard line on repaying CBILS and other loans would likely drive businesses over the edge, risking the billions fed into the economy being wasted, and the legacy of this support probably explains the year-on-year fall in significant financial distress.”

Airedale Group acquires Network Catering Engineers

Steve Fisher
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Airedale Group acquires Network Catering Engineers
Bradford-based Airedale Group, a specialist in the installation and servicing of catering equipment, has acquired Network Catering Engineers. A team led by Martin Sweeney and Jessica Fielden of Scofield Sweeney advised Airedale Group on the deal. Founded in 2000 by Tim Church, Halesown-based Network employs more than 90 engineers and carries out maintenance services for more than 60 chain customers. Airedale Group CEO, Rob Bywell commented: “Over the last 10 years, Airedale has consistently received outstanding support from Tom Sikora and Liam Bradford at HSBC Leeds Corporate and Martin Sweeney and Jessica Fielden and their teams at Schofield Sweeney. Having partners that truly understand our commercial and corporate ambitions and who we can count on time after time makes a huge difference to where we can take our business to.”  Tim Church, MD of Network said: “Airedale are a second generation family run business employing over 350 people, including 200 plus service engineers and have consistently been acknowledged as the market leading end-to-end platform business in the UK today. They have a proven track record of successful acquisitions in the kitchen maintenance space, notably SCC in 2014 and Flowrite in 2019. Just as importantly, Airedale really understands our industry and during our numerous conversations, it has become clear that we have a shared vision for the future. We believe Airedale Group is the ideal home for Network and all of the Network team are fully committed to the business for the long term.” 
 The acquisition comes after investment partnership, Rubicon Partners, bought a significant stake in Airedale Group. Rubicon is focused on the acquisition and long-term strategic development of complex industrial businesses in Europe and North America. Airedale Group CEO, Rob Bywell said: “Rubicon’s investment in May last year, which included providing significant funding for further acquisitions, has given us the support to continue building a group of highly complementary brands that are specialists and leaders in their respective sectors. Network tick all of these boxes; they are specialists in servicing high-end catering equipment, including accelerated cooking platforms and microwaves, and have further developed their capabilities into electrical and coffee machine maintenance. Network are also the foremost service provider to the Quick Service Restaurant industry, which is one of the fastest growing segments in the food service sector. Alongside our previous acquisitions SCC (catering) and Flowrite (refrigeration), Network enhances what was already an unrivalled national commercial kitchen maintenance platform. Post-acquisition the group will employ a combined total of over 300 national service technicians.”  All of the existing Network management team will remain in place and will be fully responsible for operating the business as normal.

Doncaster Race Day in Support of Children’s Charity

Steve Fisher
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Doncaster Race Day in Support of Children’s Charity
The Children’s Air Ambulance (TCAA) is hosting a fantastic Race Day in a bid to raise vital funds and awareness for the lifesaving charity. A national service, TCAA is changing the face of paediatric and neonatal care through the high-speed transfer of critically ill babies and children – flying them from one hospital to another for specialist care. The clinically-designed helicopters essentially provide a flying intensive care unit. Set to take place at Doncaster Racecourse on Saturday 16 July, the charity’s fabulous event packages on offer include free parking, admission badges and tickets, a drinks reception, a three-course dinner, live racing, and a live music concert by the legendary Nile Rodgers and Chic in the evening. About this, TCAA Community Fundraising Executive, Sharon Evans, said: “Guests can relax at their private table for the evening and enjoy a sumptuous three-course meal that offers a bird’s eye view of the finishing post. “It really is the perfect opportunity to enjoy an evening with colleagues, family, and friends whilst raising vital funds for a very worthy cause.” With sponsorship packages also available to purchase, there’s an opportunity to become a race sponsor for the evening, which includes naming rights, accessing the exclusive parade ring, presenting the trophy to the winner, and many more benefits. Amongst the guests in attendance will be Daniel Clegg – father of former TCAA patient Pippa Clegg-Rimmer – who will give a first-hand account of Pippa’s story and why the service is so vitally important. Pippa – from Sheffield – has a very rare form of pulmonary hypertension, one of only four cases ever recorded, and she was the first person under the age of 14 in the UK to have surgery to remove blood clots from her heart and lungs. Before the operation, her parents were told that there were no guarantees she would survive surgery but, as her condition was rapidly deteriorating and her life expectancy was less than a year, they felt they had no alternative but to give their consent for it to go ahead. Miraculously, Pippa defied the odds, and four weeks after she underwent the ground-breaking surgery, she was flown on the Children’s Air Ambulance from London to Sheffield to be admitted to Sheffield Children’s Hospital. Her dad Daniel accompanied her on the 70-minute transfer, a journey that would have otherwise taken over six hours due to distance and traffic hold-ups. Reflecting on this, Daniel said: “My family is very grateful that the Children’s Air Ambulance was there when we needed it. The charity is funded solely by generous donations so I encourage people to support them by going to events like the Doncaster Race Day, and I hope that me sharing our story to those at the event will exemplify what a vital and worthy cause TCAA is to support,” says Daniel. The charity has limited places available, so to purchase one of the packages or a table at the event please contact: sharon.evans@childrensairambulance.org.uk or call 07387 265 613.

MultiWeb Marketing trio to plunge 15,000ft for Bluebell Wood Children’s Hospice

Steve Fisher
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MultiWeb Marketing trio to plunge 15,000ft for Bluebell Wood Children’s Hospice
A plucky trio from Doncaster-based MultiWeb Marketing are going the extra mile – or three – in a daredevil stunt for Bluebell Wood Children’s Hospice. The community-spirited company’s senior leadership team will be plunging 15,000ft in a sponsored skydive to raise much-needed funds. That’s almost three hair-raising miles from stepping out of the plane door before they return to the safety of solid ground! For Founder Paul Smith, Operations Manager Adrian Blatherwick and Commercial Director Lewis Smith, it’s all about the cause. “We have a proud history of supporting charities and we’re always looking for ways we can give something back,” said Paul, who founded the award-winning company in 2013. “I have three children of my own and it’s beyond comprehension what some of the children and families go though, so I couldn’t think of a more worthy cause.” Commercial Director Lewis Smith echoes Paul’s motivations. “We wanted to support Bluebell Wood because of the fantastic work it does – it’s a no-brainer really,” he said. “I know the subject can be somewhat taboo, but the work that Bluebell Wood does in making children and families as comfortable as possible in such difficult circumstances is just remarkable.” None of the trio are exactly thrilled at the prospect of hurling themselves from a plane, but they’re keen to push themselves to the limit. “It seemed to us that we needed to do something a little bit out of the ordinary to raise as much as possible for such a fantastic cause,” said Paul. “I’ve never done a skydive before, but I used to be something of an adrenaline junkie – although that was several decades ago now. “I feel pretty gung-ho about it at the moment but it’s very easy to claim bravery! I’m sure that will wither away quite quickly when the doors open at 15,000 feet!” Lewis is not letting his fear of heights put him off. “It’s not everyone’s cup of tea and I must admit I’m not keen on heights at all,” he said. “I would say that I’m quite nervous about it – but it’s something we’re all very much committed to and knowing we’re doing it for such an important cause is a great motivator.” The colleagues are aiming to raise £1,200 with their sponsored skydive and are also planning another challenge at Lake Windermere in the summer. You can support their efforts here Eleanor Hughes, Regional Fundraiser at Bluebell Wood, said: “We’d like to say a huge thank you to Paul, Adrian and Lewis for bravely taking on our skydive this year. “As well as raising funds to help us make precious memories with local children and families, you’ll have a truly memorable day you’ll never forget. “Best of luck on the day and we’ll look forward to hearing all about it.” If you’d like to test your mettle and raise funds for a life-changing local charity, you can sign up to Bluebell Wood’s skydive here www.bluebellwood.org/skydive

SYMCA Chief Executive, Dr Dave Smith to stand down

Steve Fisher
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SYMCA Chief Executive, Dr Dave Smith to stand down
Chief Executive of the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority, Dr Dave Smith, has announced he is standing down from the role. Dr Smith has led the organisation since his arrival in 2016. He worked with the Mayor and Local Authority leaders to complete the region’s landmark devolution deal, acted as returning officer for the election of the South Yorkshire’s first and second Mayors, and led the integration of the MCA and South Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive (PTE). He will leave the post at the end of June 2022, supporting the transition to a new mayor following the election on Thursday 5 May. Dr Dave Smith said:“I am proud to have been part of the MCA’s journey and to have supported the Mayor and LEP’s goals for South Yorkshire. It has been an immensely rewarding role to have and we have made great strides in challenging circumstances. “After six years in the role I have decided the time is right for me to pursue other interests and opportunities. I would like to thank the Mayor, LEP and the MCA’s partners for their support during my time in post and our shared ambition to create a more prosperous South Yorkshire.” Mayor of South Yorkshire, Dan Jarvis, said:“I want to thank Dave for his leadership and commitment during my time as Mayor, and the support he has provided local leaders and myself. We have faced many challenges together – getting devolution over the line Brexit transition, and a global pandemic – and we’re indebted to Dave for his expertise and endeavour during this time. I wish him all the very best for the future.” Interim Chair of the South Yorkshire Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) Lucy Nickson, said: “I want to commend Dave for his service to the business community in South Yorkshire. During his tenure, Dave has supported our efforts to make our region an even better place to live, work and invest. He has put in place strong foundations for the Mayor and LEP to grow South Yorkshire’s economy at scale and pace in a way that benefits everyone.” Arrangements for the appointment of a new Chief Executive will be confirmed after the election of South Yorkshire’s new mayor.

Connectus Business Solutions and KTSL merge to create the Connectus Group

Steve Fisher
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Connectus Business Solutions and KTSL merge to create the Connectus Group
Connectus Business Solutions and KTSL have merged to create the Connectus Group. The businesses and their 60 employees will continue to operate from its HQ in Donacaster, south Yorkshire, and five other UK and Ireland sites, and ambitious plans are in place to create further job opportunities across their commercial, delivery and support functions. Roy Shelton will be CEO of the Connectus Group and the merger sets the Group on a path to becoming one of the leading IT Managed Service Providers (MSPs) in the UK. Their clients already include AIB, UCB, Unilever, the Peel Group, Sale Sharks and the National Police Air Service. Commenting on the merger Roy Shelton, CEO of Connectus Group said: “Today is the start of an exciting new chapter for Connectus Business Solutions and KTSL and will present an opportunity for further growth and job creation. “By bringing these two great organisations together and creating Connectus Group, we have significantly increased our technical capability, boosted our delivery resources and further deepened our pool of commercial experience. This is the third transaction in as many years for Connectus, having been forced to pause our ambitious merger and acquisition strategy due to the global pandemic. “Although that period presented challenges, it has also thrown up exciting opportunities for forward-thinking businesses like ours that can adapt quickly to the changing needs of our clients. “This merger allows both businesses to work together on a shared vision, which is to deliver efficient, collaborative and sustainable services for our customers and staff and to execute revenue growth via a planned  and controlled expansion programme. “It also brings a greater scale, allowing us to bid for larger opportunities, increase our recurring managed services revenue and will allow us to leverage our sixty-plus members of staff in a more collaborative manner.” Aaron Perrott, the CTO of KTSL said: “This is an exciting merger that will allow us to increase value for clients no matter their size. The significant investment KTSL has made in our own market leading Intellectual Property over many years will provide clear differentiation for the Connectus Group. “Hybrid working has opened up opportunities for clients to leverage our advanced Tech Bar and Portal capabilities; simplifying, integrating and consolidating complex tools and platforms for our clients. “This merger will allow us to extend our range of service solutions built on more than 20 years as a global leader in the ITSM and Service Integration space.  It will extend our portfolio to include cyber security and a secure hosting capability for our solutions.  This will broaden our capability to offer highly relevant solutions to help our combined clients mitigate cost and risk, improving their underlying service and employee experience. “With such a lot to offer, and our ability to unlock rapid returns and benefits, we are all looking forward to the next phase of our growth together.” The merger comes following a due diligence and legal process which started last November. Connectus Group expects to deliver revenues of more than £10m in the current financial year ending March 2023 including significant and sustainable profits which will help pave the way for accelerated organic and inorganic growth. Following the merger Rob Marks, the CEO of KTSL, will become the non-executive Chair of Connectus Group. The Connectus Group will be strengthened by the arrival of Keri Brocks, Company Secretary and Finance Manager; Paul Ruocco, Group CFO; Aaron Perrott, Group CTO; Tim McCue, Head of Professional Services; Mark Robinson Founding Director; Mark Wiseman, Group Commercial Officer and Andrew North, Group Sales Director. The group’s HQ will remain in Doncaster and Connectus Group will continue to operate from their five offices in Salford, Corsham, Egham, Daresbury and Dublin. For more than 20 years, Connectus Business Solutions has been a leading business connectivity and managed services partner, providing business critical infrastructure alongside fully managed solutions to help companies  stay connected, protected and to collaborate effectively online as they scale and grow. With a two-decade legacy in telecommunications, Connectus helps clients to mitigate costs, complexity and risk and provides business critical infrastructure along with fully managed solutions. It has a dedicated, customer focused and technically capable team, who work with clients at their own pace and level of technical understanding to ensure great outcomes are achieved. KTSL has excelled in the service management and integration space. They partner with BMC, 4ME, Jitterbit and Pagerduty to provide an extensive coverage of applications across the ITSM space.  Their expertise spans a wide range of industries across public and private sectors with an 80-strong network of consultants based in the UK, Ireland, Czech Republic and India. It has successfully delivered over 1,000 projects for 180 customers, including AIB, UCB, Unilever and Balfour Beatty. KTSL has helped clients take full advantage of new technology to drive adoption of digital services, creating a digitally connected business combining people, data, processes and infrastructure.

Want to boost the performance of your business? Here are some ideas

Tess Egginton
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Want to boost the performance of your business? Here are some ideas
If you’re a business owner and you’re seeking to boost its performance, then take a look at the following post. We’ll be providing some inspiration for how you can improve your business practices to help you reach your goals and targets. Read on to find out more. Automation And Outsourcing If you find that your business is receiving higher levels of customer demand, you may be wondering how best to cost-effectively increase workloads. Hiring more members of staff can be expensive and time-consuming, however, there are other options available. Automation and outsourcing services are two more economical options that can help you increase your business production, without the need for adding more team members to your payroll. Automation makes processes such as accounting, holiday entitlement, and customer service run in the background, so your staff can be working on other things whilst the automation software carries out set tasks. If the jobs you need to be carried out can’t be handled by automation software, you could also consider outsourcing. For example, outsourcing can be a great option for things such as recruitment, IT, and sales. Understanding Business Sustainability Having a clear and thorough understanding of business sustainability will help to make sure your business not only performs at its best now but into the future as well. Courses such as the sustainable finance course from the University of Cambridge can equip you with the knowledge you need to make more informed decisions for your business around finance, sustainability, and future practices. Understanding of topics such as these is also especially important for your management team and employees wishing to progress into management. Conduct Performance Reviews For Employees Performance reviews give an invaluable insight into the level at which your employees are operating and whether they require improvements in their performance. It gives you the opportunity to address any areas in which your employees require improvement, further training, or additional support. It also provides the chance for you to praise the targets and goals your employees are achieving and reward them for their hard work. Your business’s overall performance is made up of all the individuals working for you and their unique standards of performance. Therefore, it’s essential to regularly monitor this and form action plans if necessary. Make Use Of Customer Feedback Making use of customer feedback by using methods such as analysing reviews and conducting customer surveys is a great way to identify areas in which you could boost performance levels. There could be elements of the service or product you’re providing that could be improved. It could also be due to ineffective marketing methods or poor customer service. Remote Vs Office-Based Working The practice of remote working has recently become far more popular due to the need for businesses to work from home during the pandemic. However, many businesses actually found that their performance levels either stayed the same or increased while remote working. What’s more, many businesses also saved money by allowing workers to remain working from their own homes. Whether this is the right choice for you and your business will depend on your unique requirements, but it’s an option worth considering if you’re looking for ways to boost business performance, staff morale, and reduce costs.
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