TRELLEBORG SEALS GUINNESS WORLD RECORD

Tewkesbury-based Trelleborg Sealing Solutions has set a Guinness World Record title for the largest O-Ring fluid power seal which it manufactured at its Tewkesbury facility using its FlexiMold™ process.

The successful record was all part of a project with Tewkesbury School and the 364-metre elastomer O-Ring was laid around the medieval Tewkesbury Abbey.

The Mayor of Tewkesbury, an adjudicator from the Guinness Book of World Records, Trelleborg employees, pupils, their teachers and parents, and others from the local community joined the ceremony.

For the project to set a world record for the largest O-Ring ever produced, Trelleborg Sealing Solutions teamed up with 20 GCSE engineering pupils from the school.

The students were coached in manufacturing disciplines and were involved in the design, costing and production planning of the O-Ring.

Card company expands into stationery

Gloucester-based Great British Card Company has expanded into stationery. The range, called The Joy of Journaling, has been designed by the company’s inhouse artist Miki Rose.

One of the largest independent card companies in the UK, the Great British Card Company designs and makes its own cards and distributes for other companies. It started life as Paper House in 1980 in a Cheltenham garage, and then in a warehouse in Northleach before moving to its current facility at Waterwells.

Through a series of acquisitions, including Medici Cards in 2008 followed by The Almanac Gallery in 2013, the company has grown and this year diversified into gifts production to differentiate itself in an increasingly competitive greetings card environment.

Earlier this year the company recruited Katy Golden from WH Smith, making her Head

Legacy aerospace parts manufacturer snapped up by private equity

Cheltenham-based Ontic, a leading provider of original equipment manufacturer (OEM) licensed parts for legacy aerospace platforms is to be sold by its parent company BBA Aviation plc.

of Gifts. Katy has worked in various buying and new product development roles within WH Smith for more than 14 years, the last seven as category manager for stationery and gifts for the company’s website.

The Great British Card Company currently licenses out to personalised online greetings specialist Moonpig, and also to Design Design, a card publisher in the United States.

The buyer, subject to shareholder approval and regulatory consents, is private equity company CVC Capital Partner’s CVC Fund Vll.

Ontic was acquired by BBA in February 2006 and has grown through the acquisition of licences, organic growth and investment. It now supports more than 39,000 legacy aircraft, through a portfolio of more than 165 licences for around 7,000 parts and 1,200 customers worldwide.

James Mahoney, Senior Managing Director, CVC Capital Partners, said: “Ontic is a growing, highly resilient business and a leading player in what we believe to be a very attractive market. We see multiple opportunities to develop the business further and look forward to working closely with Ontic’s excellent management.” at our Annual Review event on Thursday 19th September.

Ontic has manufacturing bases in Cheltenham, the USA and Singapore.

The emerging strategy revolves around rich intelligence on our economic strengths and the local capabilities of Gloucestershire’s employers, and highlights the parts of our economy that stand to make the greatest contribution to productivity as we reach 2030.

Our emerging Local Industrial Strategy draws on significant stakeholder engagement and input as well as guidance from government and learning from other LEPs. Our ‘call for evidence’ delivered nearly 300 responses from public, private and third sector partners detailing adopted and emerging strategies and responses to the questions we posed around ways to deliver greater productivity in the county.

We have also carried out extensive face-to-face engagement with councils, regional and sub-regional partners, businesses and our youth population. Engagement with over 5,000 young people (aged 14 – 25) has helped to set the ambition to be a ‘Magnet County’, concentrating on the physical and economic parts of Gloucestershire that matter most to future generations.

But that is not the end of the process. We are seeking your views once again to ensure that we have captured the essence of this place, its businesses, residents and workforce – all of whom will be central to its success. We must continue to remove the barriers to generating greater productivity and convene the necessary conversations between stakeholders to drive action. These stakeholders include our anchor institutions such as local government and the wider public and third sector, academia, research facilities, businesses and the community. Our strategy will also drive a dialogue with government to support investment in Gloucestershire and ensure that local organisations are empowered to drive the change that is needed to respond to the economic challenges and opportunities facing the area.

GFirst LEP is seeking views on this document to ensure the future direction of its business population, residents and communities is one that delivers inclusive growth and prosperity. If you would like to respond to this consultation, please submit your comments to LIS@gfirstlep.com

Our Annual Review event is on:

Thursday 19th September - 2.30pm to 4.30pm

The School of Business & Technology Oxstalls Campus, Gloucester GL2 9HW.