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Top story
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Steel deal offers Olympic hopes for North West
Watson Steel Structures, a Bolton-based steel specialist, has won a major contract to supply steel for the new Olympic Stadium in East London. Part of Severfield Rowen, the group reported a record order book of £405m in December 2007 on the back of the contract with the Olympic Delivery Authority. Current projects also include steel for the Paradise Street development in Liverpool, which follow supply contracts to Liverpool Arena and the new stands at Aintree Racecourse. Watson Steel employs 250 people at a site in Lostock, Bolton, and was one of over 700 businesses that attended the national launch this morning at Old Trafford, hosted by Lord Coe and Culture minister Tessa Jowell, of a âbusiness dating agency' to help regional companies compete for business opportunities in helping to deliver games.
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Aerospace park takes off
Defence giant BAE Systems has started work on a new £100m aerospace business park at its site in Samlesbury, near Preston, a ten-year project that could create thousands of skilled jobs. The initial phase will create two four-storey office blocks to house 1,400 people in the group's project teams. BAE investment director Dave Holmes said that it is talking with the Northwest Regional Development Agency over facilities to house some of the 1,000 locally-based suppliers used by BAE at the site. 
Co-op to consider Somerfield bid
Peter Marks, chief executive of the Co-operative Group, has told Retail Week magazine that he would consider making a bid for rival chain Somerfield, as Co-op revealed strong festive food sales, including taking a record £24m on Christmas Eve.
Davies promotes entrepreneurship
Eddie Davies, owner of Bolton Wanderers FC, is set to fund a new Chair for Entrepreneurship at Manchester Business School. The Chair will lead the recently launched Centre for Enterprise and spearhead the school's drive to generate entrepreneurial activity. Entrepreneur Davies sold Strix, the Isle of Man-based maker of the switch that turns off kettles when the water boils, to ABN Amro in 2005 for over £300m.
Good Christmas for Booths
Family-owned food retailer Booths grew sales by 7.6 per cent over the four-week period to 5 January 2008. Edwin Booth, chairman, said: "Despite a tightening economy Booths achieved good product availability with increased customer interest in high-quality local food and drink." Preston-based Booths is planning to open three new stores over the next two years.
N Brown did well over Christmas
Shares in Manchester-based N Brown have nudged upwards this morning following Monday's trading statement that full-year profit targets will be met. The home shopping group, which traditionally specialises in large ladies underwear, reported robust Christmas trading up 14 per cent.
Sad café
Sports Café Holdings, the AIM-listed bar group chaired by Wigan Warriors owner Ian Lenagan, has called in Baker Tilly as administrator following confirmation from its bankers that they were not prepared to continue lending. The group's Manchester and Liverpool bars have closed, although six outlets remain trading.
Searching for something
An internet search engine designed to rival the likes of Google and Wikpedia is set to be launched at the end of January by The University of Manchester's national data centre, Mimas. The free service will add thousands of documents harvested from trustworthy sources to the Intute service, which already allows academics to search for information relating specifically to their subject area. The £1.5m-a-year collaboration between seven UK universities and partners enlists a team of full-time specialists to scour the internet.
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Kingsway bags second industrial occupier
The £350m Kingsway business park near Rochdale has secured its second industrial occupier. Japanese-owned construction equipment supplier Takeuchi Mfg (UK) will expand its operations in Rochdale by opening a new 55,897 sq ft facility at the 420-acre park. Takeuchi and Vindon Scientific are the first names to sign up at the park's speculatively built Plot E, which contains a further three units totalling around 87,000 sq ft. De Vere has planning permission for a Village hotel at the scheme.
TSK the lawyers' choice again
Office design and delivery business TSK Group has underlined its strength in the legal sector in securing a six-figure contract with law firm DWF. The group originally submitted a proposal to design DWF's new 42,000 sq ft base at Liverpool's St Paul's Square, but has also won the contract for the firm's new Leeds office. TSK has also completed work for Pinsent Masons, Brabners Chaffe Street, DLA Piper and Panonne.
Banks sign up in Liverpool
Bank of Scotland has signed up for 12,000 sq ft at English Cities Fund's St Paul's Square in Liverpool. The bank was close to signing at rival scheme 20 Chapel Street in summer 2006, but was unable to agree terms with developer Rumford Investments. However, Rumford has secured the move of Bank of Ireland, which will take a 6,500 sq ft floor.
New home for Concorde
Manchester Airport's Concorde is to get a new £1m hangar and visitor centre. The retired supersonic aircraft, which has been on display at the airport since 2003, is to get a new home to boost visitor numbers. Work by The Hurst Group is due to start on the glass, steel and PVC structure early in the spring and is due to be completed and open to the public by the end of July 2008. The new development, which is still subject to final planning approval, will also include a corporate hospitality suite, an education centre, an aviation exhibition and a restaurant.
WB ties the knot with Macc
Wilson Bowden Developments has signed a development agreement with Macclesfield Borough Council for its 400,000 sq ft retail-led revamp of the town centre. Debenhams is already on board as retail anchor with a 75,000 sq ft store and a national cinema operator will take an eight-screen cinema.
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Kings of the Castle
Blackburn-based Metals UK Group has been acquired by US company AM Castle & Co in a deal that will enable the Illinois business to expand its offer in Europe. Metals UK Group processes speciality metals for the oil and gas, aerospace and petrochemical markets. Trading through five companies, it expects to post sales of £35m for 2007 and has four processing plants: three in England and the other in Bilbao. Founder Ian Griffiths' management team will remain.
ACP backs away from Davenham bid
ACP Capital, the Jersey-based merchant bank, will not make an offer for Manchester-based trade finance group Davenham. The offer period expired yesterday with Davenham saying that it remained open to talks about strategy with ACP, a key shareholder. But ACP's indicative offer of 325 pence a share will not be followed up. A statement said: "ACP believes that funding and property market conditions have tightened and are likely to be challenging to Davenham's business model."
Gem of a deal
Accrington-based Joseph Metcalf, which trades as Gem Gardening in the horticultural products market, has been sold to Lincoln-based William Sinclair Holdings for an undisclosed sum. Tenon Corporate Finance negotiated the deal on behalf of Joseph Metcalf.
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New Insider out now
In 2008's first Insider, Michael Taylor meets Nigel Whitehead, the top man at BAE Systems in the North West. Bentley Motors and Deeside retailer Icebox gatecrash the top ten in the region's Top 500 companies. And, after getting it right with JJB Sports, Blackpool and the Co-operatives in 2007, what predictions does Insider have for the North West in 2008?
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