A Norwegian company has taken a 28 per cent stake in Worcestershire’s Fish4Dogs for an undisclosed amount. Stavanger-based Felleskjopet Rogaland Agder (FKRA), is a producer and supplier of animal feeds, fertilizers and machinery for farmers. It has signed an agreement to purchase the remaining stake in Fish4Dogs in three years' time. Fish4Dogs, based in Rushock, produces fish-based food products for dogs and cats.

Best practice workshops for manufacturers take place in the West Midlands next week. Led by the Manufacturing Advisory Service – West Midlands (MAS-WM), the trio of interactive seminars will focus on value stream mapping and ensuring firms are in a position to identify key issues affecting their businesses. Simon Griffiths, chief executive of MAS-WM, believes this calendar of activity is something that local manufacturers should take advantage of: “We all talk about the importance of retaining and winning new business, but, in today’s competitive climate, it is equally vital for businesses to look at the way they operate and how they can cut costs by becoming more productive.”

This week marks the start of Insider's exclusive new feature Talking Point, a guest blog where key figures from the region discuss the major issues affecting their sector. This week Graham Nicoll, regional centre head at Barclays Wealth and chairman of Birmingham Forward, reviews the challenges faced by the region’s professional services sector. How are businesses attracting talent while balancing the books? And what pitfalls must professional services organisations avoid? Find out here.

Faster journey times to London will be a major boost to the Midlands economy, a Chiltern Railways executive has predicted. Marketing director Thomas Ableman said the link would prove a significant boon for the regional economy. Speaking at a joint Business Voice WM and Coventry & Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce breakfast at the Hilton Warwick hotel, Ableman stressed that the £250m upgrade of the Moor Street to Marylebone line, due to be completed by next year, would slash travel times on the route.

Some 56 per cent of decision makers at British mid-market companies consider their business sector to still be in recession, according to a Grant Thornton report. The survey revealed that in construction 87 per cent of respondents said that their sector was in recession. Ian Wilson, Birmingham-based head of Grant Thornton’s Midlands corporate finance team, said: "Our survey shows a bounce back in sectors with more flexible business models, as well as those that benefit from a weak currency, but the sharp rise in unemployment during the first quarter of 2010 indicates that the recession is far from over.”

Lincolnshire potato supplier Branston is celebrating after scooping a major award for its commitment to the environment. It won the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyor’s East Midlands sustainability award for its new prepared foods factory in Lincolnshire. The factory has been designed to be as environmentally efficient as possible. It was completed in May last year and it now shares resources with the main factory next door at its site in Branston near Lincoln. It already benefits from the company’s new water recycling facility and will soon utilise energy that has been generated onsite by the company’s anaerobic digestion (AD) plant.

Walsall Regeneration Company (WRC) has appointed Birmingham firm Clarke Associates to handle its PR and marketing brief. The consultant is charged with delivering a wide-ranging communications programme, key to which will be promoting Walsall as a “town for enterprise”. The consultancy won a competitive tender for the WRC work. The remit includes delivering communications, PR and marketing, media relations, engaging stakeholders as well as securing buy-in from developers, investors and the wider community. Clarke Associates will also look after WRC’s website and develop its digital communication. Akshay Parikh, chief operating officer for WRC, said: “We are delighted with this appointment and look forward to working with Clarke Associates.”

Organisers of the Commercial Vehicle Operator Show at The NEC have hailed the exhibition a success, as thousands of visitors attended the three-day event. Kathryn James, managing director, The NEC, said: “We worked closely with the organisers to support the show including providing visitor marketing and PR support to drive visitor numbers and ensure that the exhibition was a genuine success. Bob Sockl, show organiser, said: “From the response from the majority of exhibitors, the Commercial Vehicle Operator Show could not have gone better.” The Commercial Vehicle Show returns to The NEC from 12-14 April 2011.

Insider Membership gives you essential sales leads, competitor intelligence, business analysis and comment from your region. Give yourself that competitive edge by becoming an Insider Member today and get indispensable information and inspiration throughout 2010. Click here for the Membership package and order online today to stay ahead of the game. Alternatively, contact Richard Graham or call 0161 907 9724 for further information.

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BPG Investments has acquired Northampton House in Solihull. The 7,000 sq ft mixed-use building was purchased for circa £2m, representing an equivalent yield of 9 per cent. Situated at 1-3 High Street and 53-55 Poplar Road, the 1970s building comprises three storeys and a basement. There is 2,000 sq ft of prime retail space and 5,000 sq ft of office space, all of which is close to fully let. Anchor tenants are HBOS and Cunningtons Solicitors. Dawsons, a well established independent jewellers, also occupy one of the three ground floor retail units. Franck-Steier Price acted for BPG.

Jones Lang LaSalle’s healthcare team in Birmingham has completed the sale of Pencombe Hall residential care home in Pencombe, Herefordshire, for an undisclosed sum. Planning permission is in place for the construction of an additional stand-alone 40-bed care home with nursing, specialising in dementia care. The new purchaser, an existing care home operator, plans to expand the business with the construction of the new home. Paul Burford, associate director of healthcare in Jones Lang LaSalle’s Birmingham office, who handled the sale, said: “We were able to exchange contracts without residents or staff being aware of the sale, enabling confidentiality throughout the process.”

Duncan Smith is to leave Derwent Living after three years as chairman. Smith will be retiring from the board at the Derby-based housing provider’s AGM in June. He said: “The way staff and directors have responded to changes in the housing sector has been impressive. Like other sectors of the economy, housing is bracing itself for difficult times. Derwent Living’s ability to innovate and a strong financial base gives it confidence for the future, and my best wishes go to my colleagues and the new chair.”

KPMG’s pensions practice in Birmingham has appointed a partner and a director to its 90-strong regional team. Alan Pentland joins the firm as a partner and Matt Collinson joins as a director. Pentland previously worked at PwC for 16 years where he headed up its human resources services practice in the East Midlands. Collinson has over 15 years’ experience advising businesses on pensions strategy. He joins the firm from the Birmingham office of actuarial consultants Mercer.