Member Article

Barnsley's Naylor Industries gets funding boost for £2.5 million green project

Barnsley-based manufacturing firm Naylor Industries have received a grant of £650k towards a £2.5 million project to increase capacity and reduce energy consumption at its Cawthorne factory.

The Clay division of Naylor’s Drainage subsidiary has been given the grant funding from the Sheffield LEP to help “dramatically reduce” the company’s carbon footprint.

The commissioning of a new energy-efficient kiln and dryer will allow the company to increase capacity, whilst creating over 30 jobs.

Naylor Industries primarily manufactures products for the construction industry, and employs more than 220 people in the region. Established in 1890, the firm has five factories in South and West Yorkshire, Fife and the West Midlands.

The company has sold to 49 different countries and is seeking to expand its export markets in Indonesia and the Philippines.

Naylor’s finance director Andrew Trippitt said: “We are thrilled that this grant funding from the Sheffield City Region Local Enterprise Partnership will enable us to progress our ambitious plans to grow internationally whilst simultaneously creating a more sustainable business for the future.

“Over recent years, we have made great progress in developing export sales of our specialist pipe systems for the chemical drainage and trenchless technology sectors.

“At the same time, capacity constraints and rising energy costs have posed a threat to future growth. This project will allow us to expand our international sales whilst allowing careful control of energy consumption.

“The project plan is all about enabling us to develop and grow our export business in a sustainable manner whilst creating employment opportunities in the Sheffield City Region.”

The history of the Naylor Group dates back to 1890, when the great-grandfather of current chief executive Edward Naylor, a civil engineer, built a railway viaduct in Denby Dale, West Yorkshire. The discovery a clay seam led to the foundation of a clay brick and pipe factory, which has evolved into a modern-day business with a group turnover approaching £50 million.

James Newman, chairman of the Sheffield City Region LEP, said: “We are thrilled that we have been able to help Naylor with its ambitious plans to increase capacity and save energy; these will enable the firm to cut costs and compete at an international level.

“The LEP bid for, and secured this funding on a competitive basis. Since then we have set about securing the maximum value for public money, and in doing so, supporting as many companies as possible to invest and grow.”

Coun Roy Miller, cabinet spokesperson for Place at Barnsley Council, added: “I’m very happy that the firm has successfully secured this funding.

“Supporting business growth in Barnsley is a priority for shaping the future of the borough so this grant is great news for both Naylor Industries and the Barnsley borough as a place to work and develop.”

The grant funding has come from the LEP’s “Unlocking Business Investment” programme, which has seen £32 million in central Government funding allocated to the city region.

Around £29 million of that fund has already been allocated, while £3 million is still available to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that plan to create sustainable, private sector employment in the Sheffield City Region.

Significant expenditure must have taken place by March next year and the balance of investment must be in place by March 2016.

Earlier this year, it was announced that the Sheffield City Region has secured a £320m “growth deal” from the Government, which will create more than 28,000 jobs and training for 40,000 people.

This is the fifth-largest sum to be secured of the 39 LEPs within the country.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Clare Burnett .