Northwest businesses continue London 2012 success

As construction work continues on the Olympic Park in London, a number of key contracts are now being won by Northwest businesses, with work being procured downstream by main contractors.
Examples of recent Northwest business wins include Manchester-based building protection provider Icopal, which has secured a contract to supply a gas protection scheme for the Handball Arena. It is the second round of London 2012 business success for the company, which has recently completed a contract to supply 10,000m of geomembrane to prevent the problem of Japanese Knotweed on the Olympic Park.
Leighs Paints in Bolton has also capitalised on the success of another Northwest firm, winning a contract to provide a range of coatings for the steel frame of the main Olympic stadium, which is being manufactured and installed by Bolton company Watson Steel. Watson’s is also providing the steel for the Velodrome and for the land bridge (and roof of the Aquatics Centre training pool) which will form the main entrance to the games
The Northwest Regional Development Agency (NWDA) is working hard to help businesses in the region to compete for a slice of the action, Over 1,700 regional businesses have attended events held by the Agency, designed to equip them with the skills to compete for Games-related contracts. Encouraging firms to register on CompeteFor, the business ‘dating service’ matching companies to Games-related contracts, the Agency is also working closely with Business Link Northwest to ensure support is targeted at companies aligned to emerging opportunities.
 
In June 2009, the Agency organised a tour of the Olympic Park for regional businesses. Here, companies were able to gain a valuable insight into the exact nature of the scale, scope and timing of supply chain contracts.
 
“The businesses invited on the tour of the Park over the summer were carefully selected to ensure they matched, as closely as possible, future contract opportunities, said Mark Hughes, Executive Director of Economic Development at the NWDA. “The success that Northwest businesses have had so far is exactly why we’re continuing to encourage them to register for London 2012 opportunities.
 
“This is really paying off with almost 4,500 registering their interest to supply, and at least 90 having won related contracts. We want to see this figure increase and in the current economic climate, it’s never been more important for companies to explore opportunities to make their businesses stronger.”
 
It’s a philosophy shared by Olympic Projects Manager at Icopal, Grahame Leach:
“As a company, we decided at an early stage that we would try to obtain work for our Manchester factory by looking at opportunities on the Olympic Park”, he said. “Our first contract was so successful that we were keen to keep capitalising on the opportunities available so it’s great news for our business to have secured this second contract.
 
“We’ve been greatly aided in our efforts by the NWDA”, he continued. “Through their support, we’ve not only been able to meet decision makers and other potential future partners, but have also been kept fully informed about developments within this massive project.”