NEWS
CHARLES HURST OWNER LAUNCHES MAJOR DRIVE
Charles Hurst Group owner Lookers plc has launched a new campaign to recruit 100 technicians across its UK & Ireland network of 152 dealerships and is urging local skilled and graduate technicians to see what is on offer. Around 25 of the new roles will be created at Charles Hurst in Northern Ireland with a salary ranging from £26,000 to £34,000 per annum and the potential to earn up to £39,000 a year.
£450,000 INVESTMENT AT KILWAUGHTER Sixteen new jobs have been created by Kilwaughter Minerals as part of a £450,000 investment in its production operations. The investment connects to the company’s strategic focus on employees and organisation capability, and brings the overall number employed by the firm to 200.
BRITISH AIRWAYS EXTENDS BELFAST CITY SCHEDULE
British Airways is extending three of its newest domestic routes – Exeter, Glasgow and Leeds from George Best Belfast City Airport this Winter season. Customers will also be able to book direct to Birmingham. This is in addition to the airline’s London City Airport service that operates up to three times daily from Belfast City Airport and its up to four times daily service to London Heathrow.
HENRY BROTHERS WINS RESPONSIBLE COMPANY OF THE YEAR Henry Brothers has been named NI Responsible Company of the Year at Business in the Community’s 2021 Responsible Business Awards. A panel of independent judges awarded Henry Brothers with the prestigious award for demonstrating the implementation of a wide range of successful corporate responsibility initiatives.
US TECHNOLOGY SOLUTIONS PROVIDER TO SET UP TECH CENTRE IN NI Massachusetts-based SME, Safety NetAccess is to create 40 new jobs as part of a firsttime investment in Northern Ireland. The company is setting up a Software Development & Sales Support Centre to support its growth in the US and into Europe. Safety NetAccess designs, builds and supports wireless networks and technology solutions for hotels, resorts, apartments, and other public properties. It provides software and services to over 4,000 properties and 125+ million connected devices on average daily. The company aims to create 40 new jobs by 2023. Once all in place, the project will generate additional annual salaries of c£1.4m into the NI economy. Invest NI has offered £270,000 of support towards the new roles.
LIDL ANNOUNCES NEW £11 MILLION WILLOWBROOK DEAL Lidl Northern Ireland has awarded Newtownards-based fresh food producer Willowbrook Foods an expanded supply deal worth £11 million – almost double its previous contract – to supply 25 new lines of fresh convenience foods across its network of 210 stores throughout the island of Ireland. Tanya Neilson (NPD & Hub Innovation Manager The local company has been at Willowbrook Foods), Enya Rooney (Senior supplying Lidl Northern Ireland with Buyer at Lidl Northern Ireland) and John McCann (Founder and CEO of Willowbrook Foods). premium bagged salads and fresh deli products since 2011. The new contract with Lidl Northern Ireland represents an 83% boost on last year – taking the former £6 million annual contract to £11 million – and will see 25 new product lines introduced across its premium range of ready meals, stir fry and deli salads.
ELECTRIC STORAGE COMPANY EXPANDS TO MEET GROWING DEMAND FOR RENEWABLES The Electric Storage Company is expanding its team with 10 jobs in a £780,000 investment to help it meet the growing demand for renewable energy across Northern Ireland, RoI and Great Britain. The company offers a new service to domestic energy users, which gives them the tools to maximise energy produced from renewables such as solar or wind from their homes. Its customers can choose to use the energy generated whenever it is needed or trade it in the energy market through a provision of battery storage hardware and Internet of Things technology. Invest NI has offered the company £206,000 of support towards the new jobs, support to participate on its collaborative growth programme, technical The Electric Storage Company founders Anne development assistance and Marie McGoldrick and Eddie McGoldrick with R&D. Invest NI’s Grainne McVeigh.
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