North East manufacturer receives £150k grant to create more than 30 new jobs

A North East manufacturer has announced that it has received a £150k grant to increase its workforce and accelerate its growth.

Filtronic, which designs and manufactures advanced RF products and solutions for critical communications markets, has been awarded the capital grant from the County Durham Growth Fund.

The company will use the money to help bolster its manufacturing and testing facilities, as well as create up to 36 new jobs.

Filtronic’s chief financial officer, Michael Tyerman, commented: “The way we communicate is changing dramatically and with the increased growth in traffic expected from 5G, network capacity has to be improved.

“In order to address this challenge, we have invested significant R&D activity in developing a number of E-band products which can deliver high performance at a competitive cost, which have understandably attracted interest from a number of potential new customers.

“Now, thanks to our own capital investment and the fantastic support we’ve had from the County Durham Growth Fund, we have been able to expand our manufacturing and testing facilities, allowing us to produce in larger quantities which will enable us to win work with other companies, accelerating our plans for growth.”

Sarah Slaven, interim managing director of Business Durham, said: “The support we have given to Filtronic has not only led to the creation of new jobs and significant expansion at the company’s NETPark facility, but also demonstrates the diversity of the fund to support companies across a broad range of sectors in our area.”