International aviation technology specialist sees sales soar after opening northwest base
The UK arm of Finnish technology firm Fastems has more than doubled its turnover since opening a base in the northwest of England.
Despite the recession Fastems UK Ltd, world-leading suppliers of factory automation systems for the aerospace and metal cutting industries, is going from strength to strength.
Its UK sales reached €9.7M last year, compared to €3.4M in 2008, when the company was operating out of just one UK base in the South of England.
Fastem’s UK Managing Director Steve Malone said the decision to open a northern base in the Liverpool Science Park two and a half years ago has played a significant contributing factor to the recent success of the firm.~
Mr Malone said: “Opening the office in Liverpool gave us in roads into Scotland and Northern Ireland and played a huge part in heightening our UK profile. We are in talks with more northern companies now. We’ve seen significant growth in the UK business, particularly in the aerospace industry, and we want to build on this growth this year and beyond. We are already on track to achieve similar sales figures this year, which we are delighted with, especially when you consider some firms in the metal cutting industry have seen their sales fall quite dramatically.”
Fastems products and services are designed to help organisations get the most out of their annually available 8,760 production hours. Its UK clients include Rolls-Royce, British Aerospace at Samlesbury, Preston - where the Eurofighter Typhoon is built, heating specialists Baxi Group and Bombardier Aerospace in Belfast, Northern Ireland.
The award-winning Liverpool Science Park, based in the city’s Knowledge Quarter, is proving the first port of call for an increasing number of expanding knowledge and high-tech companies from outside of the northwest region and internationally. The Park has recently opened a 2,000 sq ft ‘Soft Landing Centre’ offering competitive office space, business support, access to financial assistance and direct links to University contacts and potential clients, to help even more firms move into Liverpool.
Chloe Young, Business Development Director at Liverpool Science Park, said: “The soft landing centre is the perfect way for companies from outside of the region to test the market in the northwest. We’ve already welcomed companies from Canada and Lithuania, and talks are underway with other international firms.”
Liverpool Science Park, which opened in January 2006, is the second fastest growing science park in the UK and has a 100% retention rate, with not one operating company leaving the park other than through merger or acquisition.
Tony O’Neill, Head of Business Support at Liverpool Vision said: “We became aware of Fastems’ interest in opening a northern base in mid-2007, and introduced them to a number of potential properties in Liverpool. From the outset, Steve Malone could see the opportunities a base in the city centre would open for his company, and he quickly settled on Liverpool Science Park as his ideal base. We can be proud that Fastems is enhancing its own reputation, and that of the city of Liverpool, on an international stage.”
Fastems is a privately owned Finnish company with an annual turnover of €100M. It has 360 staff working out of offices across Europe and the USA.
For more information about Fastems please visit www.fastems.com
For more information about Liverpool Science Park and its new Soft Landing Centre facility visit www.liverpoolsciencepark.co.uk
BACK
The Capital, 39 Old Hall Street, Liverpool L3 9PP Telephone: +44(0)151 600 2900
Email: info@liverpoolvision.co.uk