PECM Issue 23 2016 | Page 40

PP pushes the button on £1m factory extension O ne of the West Midlands’s fastest growing manufacturers is dismissing uncertainty surrounding Brexit by investing more than £1m on a new factory extension. PP Control & Automation has pressed the button on ambitious expansion plans that will see it add 1,000 sq metres of production space to its existing site in Cheslyn Hay, including PP Control & Automation, a new logistics department and clean which holds ISO assembly area. 9001:2015 and UL 508A accreditations, is targeting growth in Germany, the US and North America as part of its push for £40m sales. Construction work has already started on the building in a move that will give the company the additional capacity it requires to achieve its target of doubling sales turnover to £40m by 2021. New staff are in the process of being recruited for the first phase of expansion, with the control and automation specialist keen to invest in six new apprentices as part of this recruitment drive. “There was a lot of talk about uncertainty holding back industry after the Brexit vote, but we have confidence - in the medium term - that UK manufacturing in general will be strong and the growth plans of ourselves and our customers remain unchanged,” explained Tony Hague, Managing Director. “In the short term with Sterling weakening against the euro and the US dollar, we have actually seen growth in export markets as UK competitiveness has improved.”