10 minute read
Corporate Profiles
Bringing waterways to life
A charity which looks after and brings to life 2,000 miles of waterways is set to hold a programme of events to help people explore and learn about Coventry Canal.
The Canal & River Trust is supporting the celebrations for Coventry City of Culture 2021 and the Commonwealth Games in 2022.
The charity is currently working on a programme of events and activities
A leading manufacturer and supplier of power transmission products and bulk material handling components and systems based in the
United States has continued its global expansion by opening a manufacturing facility in Europe.
Martin Sprocket & Gear has launched its new facility in Spa Park,
Leamington, to service existing and new customers in Europe, Middle East and Africa.
This new venture complements the company’s global footprint, having facilities in USA, Mexico, Brazil and
China.
Established in 1951, the family-owned company is known for its dedication to quality, inventory and customer service.
Martin Sprocket & Gear provides a one-stop-shop that offers quick deliveries, quality service and modifications that are machined to precise specifications.
The UK facility will support these company values through the hiring of a local, service-oriented team, a machine shop to re-work standard products to customers’ requirements, and an extensive inventory of stock and made-to-order power transmission, material handling and conveyor pulley components.
The extensive Power Transmission inventory includes sprockets, grooved that will allow local people to take part in the celebrations while exploring and learning about Coventry Canal.
The programme will not only teach people about the canal itself, but how spending time by the water can have a positive impact on wellbeing.
The Canal & River Trust is working to transform canals into spaces where people want to spend time and feel better. pulleys, bushings, synchronous pulleys and couplings.
Conveyor pulley and components are also available, such as Martin’s Elite
Drum Pulleys, Clean Flight Wing
Pulleys, keyless lockers and a variety of lagging options.
When looking for screw conveyor, drag conveyor, bucket elevator or other bulk material handling systems or components, the Martin Sprocket & Gear UK team can assist with stock or custom needs.
The company has spent more than 65 years serving the power transmission and material handling industries, working on projects in wide variety of industries throughout the world including agriculture, food processing, mining, cement and aggregate, waste management and more.
It employs leading experts in each industry and continually innovates to deliver value-added solutions that minimize downtime, reduce maintenance costs, and solve countless other daily operations challenges.
Phillip Hewitt, general manager –
EMEA at Martin Sprocket & Gear, said: “Our dedication to innovation is not only valued externally, but it is a commitment to internal operations and safety as well.
“As seen through the utilisation of the
Lean manufacturing methodology
It also works with local businesses, community groups and residents who want to help care for their local canals or towpaths.
Terry Hodgetts, West Midlands business and corporate engagement partner at Canal & River Trust, said: “We’re proud to be supporting the celebrations for the Coventry City of Culture 2021 and the Commonwealth Games in 2022 and look forward to announcing our full programme of activities and events.
“Our canals run through some of the most heavily populated communities in the West Midlands and provide accessible green and blue space where it’s needed the most.
“They provide green traffic free routes in and around the city centres and direct paths to the countryside.
“Our work involves not only looking after our waterways, but promoting them widely to the eight million plus people who have waterways on their doorstep so that many more people benefit from our free, accessible and local source of wellbeing. and membership in amfori’s Business Social Compliance Initiative (BSCI), we endeavour to create a culture where employees share thoughts, ideas and information to improve how we do business. “In compliance with government requirements, the company has had to adapt to follow all Covid-19 protocols. “However, where other companies are slowing manufacturing and decreasing inventory, Martin Sprocket & Gear UK
“Research shows that spending time by water, whether it be your lunchbreak, daily commute or just a weekend stroll, really does make us feel happier and healthier.
“That’s why we’re working with volunteers, local communities and businesses across Coventry and Warwickshire to transform our canals into spaces where people want to spend time and feel better.
Further information about the Canal & River Trust, holding a sociallydistanced team day on the canal, or how community groups and residents can show their support is available
Global firm opens European manufacturing facility in Warwickshire
at www.canalrivertrust.org.uk
continues to hire and add product to our already large inventory. “We are ready to meet the everchanging needs of the international market with this simple but steadfast philosophy – make a quality product, have plenty of it available and be easy to do business with.”
For further information about Martin Sprocket & Gear UK, visit www.martinsprocket.com or contact EMEASales@martinsprocket.com
Award-winning Family Law team shows sensitive side
The sensitive handling of family law issues during the Coronavirus crisis helped to land a Corporate Member of the Chamber a major national award.
Shakespeare Martineau picked up the Family Law Firm of the Year Award (England and Wales) at the prestigious Lexis Nexis Family Law Awards in November.
The firm’s Family Law department operates across all of the firm’s offices and is headed up by Partner Helen Bowns and includes a further 10 lawyers, three of whom are also Partners.
The department deals with everything from divorce right through to pre-nuptial agreements, an area of work that has grown in recent years due to the number of high-profile cases.
And, at the start of the Coronavirus crisis, the company launched a helpline for families and offered webinars to help families understand some of the legal issues arising such as the movement of children between households when people were being told to stay at home and not mix.
Helen, who is based in the Stratford office, said: “As a Family Law department, we pride ourselves on offering very sensitive and supportive advice to our clients because, with each case, there are real people and real families involved.
A world-leading manufacturer of antiterrorist security bollards and barriers is on track for exports to surge to 50 per cent of all its business with deals continuing to be struck around the globe from its Coventry headquarters.
At the start of its 2021, Safetyflex Barriers is poised to build on its international dominance within the market with further contracts expected from existing and new territories to take it to the predicted 50 per cent export mark by 2022.
Safetyflex’s pioneering crash-rated technology protects sites around the world and its Truckstopper series has revolutionised the anti-terrorism bollards market. Low-cost, easy to install and aesthetically pleasing, they can be found in major cities and high-profile locations in the UK and overseas to protect the public from vehicle attacks.
Over the last 12 months - and off the back of winning ‘Company of the Year’ and ‘International Trade and Export of the Year Award’ at the Coventry Telegraph Business Awards - it landed its first order in Finland and secured contracts in Norway and Australia, making it the main supplier of antiterrorist bollards in both countries.
“When the crisis hit, we wanted to reach out to the community to let them know that they could come to us for advice at a time that’s extremely difficult for everyone.
“The crisis has had an impact on what we do. There were couples just at the beginning of divorce proceedings who were then forced to stay indoors with one another for several weeks on end, which is naturally very tough.
“There were also married couples who were, maybe, considering separation and the Covid-19 crisis has amplified their issues and, therefore, accelerated divorce.
“In all instances, it’s absolutely vital to be understanding of every case and to be extra sensitive when there are children involved.
“On the other side of the coin, we are seeing growth in pre-nuptial agreements which also have to be handled very sensitively. Very often, this is couples on their second marriage who are bringing assets into the relationship with them that they want to preserve for children from the previous marriage.
“You also get the Bank of Mum and
Dad who may be lending money to buy a property for a couple before they are married but will only do so on the basis that a pre-nup is signed. Again, this is
In the UK, its award-winning Truckstopper range has become the security bollard of choice for more towns, cities and venues, with the Tower Bridge area of London and Blackpool Tower among high-profile locations for recent installations.
The design and appearance of the bollards, capable of stopping a very large truck travelling at high speed whilst also impacting less on the street scene, has been key to landing the contracts at home and abroad.
And its new fully-automated bollard, Truckstopper Auto 50, and Truckstopper London Bridge Bollard, a fixed bollard designed to protect key bridges from vehicle attacks, both added to its range in 2020, are attracting strong interest, with the first Auto 50s already installed at city centre locations.
Marcus Gerrard, director at Safetyflex Barriers, said: “We are continuing to revolutionise the anti-terrorism bollards market by designing products which meet the specific needs of certain types of locations for protection from hostile vehicle attacks. But most of all, they look aesthetically pleasing. something to be handled sensitively which our team is trained to do.
Shakespeare Martineau also offers a mediation service for couples wanting to avoid court proceedings when it comes to divorce cases, and the firm works with business owners when it comes to divorces to help settle what happens to the company in the wake of a split.
It has offices across the UK including Nottingham, Leicester, Birmingham, Milton Keynes and London as well as in Stratford-upon-Avon.
For more information on the Shakespeare Martineau Family Law team go to
Safetyflex Barriers strengthens overseas market share
www.shma.co.uk/for-life/family/
Installation of anti-terrorist security bollards by Safetyflex Barriers in the Sydney area of Australia.
“Since the terrorist attacks on Westminster and London Bridges, there has been a requirement for extra antiterrorist measures to be put in place.
“By combining our decades of expertise and latest technology, we have invented an ultra- shallow London Bridge bollard to specifically protect bridges and in the case of the Truckstopper Auto 50, a fully-automated bollard which offers protection and flexibility for access.
“Both have been successfully crashtested to tough industry standards and the market response has been extremely encouraging with a number of installations in the UK expected in the coming year.
“The overseas market is developing extremely well with a particularly strong presence in Australia, the US and parts of Europe which we expect to broaden during 2021.
