Sheffield’s manufacturing sector has been given a boost of 30 new jobs thanks to a grant from Sheffield City Region.
Advanced Engineering Techniques (AET), based in the Halfway area of the city, hired the new employees.
The privately owned SME not only created local jobs for unemployed people in the region, but also gave promotions to staff and created new senior management positions.
AET was established in 1989 and specialises in fabrications, machining and laser cutting, supplying sectors such as the security industry, lifting equipment, offshore platforms, yellow goods, road freight and the bus and coach sectors.
As part of a total investment of £450,000, the Sheffield City Region Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) granted the firm just short of £100,000 to expand its manufacturing capacity, along with improving the layout of the factory to create further space.
AET Managing Director, David Birch, said that the LEP grant has meant that the company has been able to take on 30 new employees, along with the purchase of two new robots which will run throughout the day and change the factoryâs layout, which will all help the firm to increase turnover by 25%.
Birch added: The grant has been great for our SME as we have been able to take on more work with existing customers as well as bringing in a new customer, thanks to our extra members of staff and new machines.
We have also been able to export to the Far East, something we hadnât done before.
Currently, the company has 190 members of staff, including contract, seasonal and permanent workers, while in the next ten years AET is planning to increase the number of employees to 250-300, while expanding the business with the purchase of additional premises.
Birch also said that the funding has also enabled the company to use some of its budget to provide its staff with further training.
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