Business News

Six months after its introduction, businesses remain in the dark about how best to utilise the Apprenticeship Levy, according to a survey released today (Friday) by the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC), in conjunction with Middlesex University London.

The annual workforce survey of over 1,400 businesses found that nearly a quarter (23%) of levy-paying firms have no understanding of the Apprenticeship Levy or don’t know how their company will respond to it.

Businesses with a pay-bill of less than £3m fall under the levy threshold but can still apply for apprentice funding, yet the findings of the survey show 66% of these companies haven’t taken any direct action to use the funds or don’t know about it.

For over half of levy-paying businesses, it represents an added cost, with 56% not expecting to recover any or only a portion of their payment, compared to 36% who expect to recover all or more of their payment.

The findings reinforce the need for clearer guidance and support for businesses wanting to utilise the Apprenticeship Levy. Firms, both above and below the levy threshold, are uncertain about how to use the funds to find and train the skills they need, undermining the purpose of the system.

Martin Dudley, Chief Executive of Thomas Dudley Ltd, commented: “Uncertainty leads to procrastination, and the implementation of the levy has led to a drop in apprenticeships in the short term. Neither businesses nor providers know what is going on. However, training was not previously seen by businesses as a high enough priority and providers were not talking to businesses about their needs. The levy has the potential to change this.”

Vikki Haines, Careers Enterprise Co-ordinator at the Black Country Chamber of Commerce, commented: “As a Chamber, we feel that communication has been inconsistent and businesses have found it difficult to find answers. Therefore, we are calling for robust channels of communication to be made available. In essence, businesses require greater flexibility on how they can utilise their levy monies and a system that is fully operational as quickly as possible, is simple and efficient, and that enables them to access good quality training.”

Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce (GBCC) are spearheading a drive to create more business with Turkey.

A delegation from the GBCC has been on a lightning visit to Bursa, about 100 miles from Istanbul and met businesses who are thirsting to establish business with UK SMEs.

This was made obvious with visit to several companies, including a textile giant and huge manufacturing plants.

Paul Faulkner, the GBCC’s chief executive, said: “This was an extremely productive and insightful trip. There is so much potential in Turkey and one that West Midlands companies must take a close look at.

“It is obvious that many UK companies are fearful of even getting into export markets, but they do need to understand that there is huge potential out there.

“And it may not be obvious, but there are many countries like Turkey that UK businesses do not take seriously as potential partners.

“To drive this new understanding, the Chamber has agreed to promote a huge Bursa International Summit beginning at the end of November which is being led by Bursa Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BTSO).

“This will be a great opportunity for inquisitive and ambitious businesses in Greater Birmingham to start to explore and develop relationships with Bursa firms, and BTSO have made it clear that they will welcome us back with open arms and do all they can to facilitate the opening up of new relationships.

“And there are easy links with Bursa via Istanbul with 12 direct flights a week with Turkish Airlines from Birmingham Airport. I urge anyone with any interest in joining us and attending to reach out as soon as possible.

Chamber Commerce membership in Turkey is compulsory and the BTSO demonstrated how effectively they can support their 40,000 members.

Cuneyt Sener, vice president of BTSO, said: “We really want to establish serious contact with UK companies and urge them to come here to see what we do.

“Bursa is a city of huge potential and we will shortly be opening a shopping centre in Moscow to sell goods from our region. We have plans to do similar exercises throughout the world.

“It is really important that UK companies come here and push themselves. They should tell us what they want from Bursa and we will be very happy to help them.”

The GBCC delegation included president Paul Kehoe, chief operating officer Russell Jeans and Professor Alex De Ruyter, Director of the Centre for Brexit Studies at Birmingham City University.

Mr Kehoe said: “Understanding this area is just an eye-opener and we need to spread the word on the success business out here are having. We need to be their allies.

“Between us we can provide links between Asia in the east through Bursa and through towards the west and the United States.”

Mr Jeans said: “We were all impressed with the tremendous enthusiasm here from businesses that have great synergies with the UK.

“The GBCC’s International Hub will be driving greater links with Turkey and Bursa in particular and we are happy to facilitate any company that wants to look at doing business there.”

The Birmingham delegation visited a textile manufacturing giant, Ilay Textile, who are planning to open a UK office to cope with a growing market here, currently running at 10 million dollars annually. Part of those sales is a yearly contract to supply Marks & Spencer with dress materials.

Durmazlar, established in 1987 as Turkey’s first sheet metal company now employing 1,500 people with lazar-cutting machines and the complete production of trams, largely for the city of Bursa but with world-wide ambitions.

Yepsan, an archetypical metal-bashing company that supplies components to Fiat, Bentley, VW, Audi and Volvo among others also  have a huge defence and aviation division based in Turkey’s capital Ankara with customers like Boeing and Airbus. They also specialise in manufacturing helicopter simulators and seats

As ART Business Loans celebrated 20 years of lending to small businesses in the West Midlands at its AGM, Chief Executive Steve Walker said: “We are ready, willing and able to do more to fill the gap in the market for small business loans left by the banks.  Both research and our experience on the ground show this gap to be bigger than it was in 1997, when we were set up to tackle the issue.”

Offering his congratulations on ART’s achievements over 20 years, Andy Street, Mayor of the West Midlands Combined Authority, who was guest speaker at the AGM, described ART as one of the unsung heroes of the local business finance scene, saying: “I first met Steve Walker when I became Chairman of the Greater Birmingham and Solihull Local Enterprise Partnership (GBSLEP) and was impressed by his knowledge, enthusiasm and determination when it comes to finance for enterprise.  Access to finance was always a key issue raised with the LEP and ART was always there – from long before the LEP came into being – persistently working, even through difficult times, to ensure that businesses could access the finance they needed to survive and thrive.  ART has made a big difference to hundreds of businesses and a huge contribution to the local economy over the past two decades.  In some ways the access to finance situation has improved in recent years, but there are still issues to tackle.”

Steve Walker believes the issues remaining include the tendency for new initiatives led by the public sector to focus on larger, high growth, businesses.  “Some businesses are finding it easier to access finance,” he says, “but those which are smaller and don’t fit the credit scoring criteria of either the banks or some of the new alternative finance providers, still need ART.  We lend up to £150,000 to any type of business, for any business purpose.  Our aim is to support local jobs for local people, remaining true to the mission set out by our founding Chairman Sir Adrian Cadbury.”

Sir Adrian’s son Benedict and daughter Caroline attended the AGM along with over 60 ART members, borrowers, introducers, partners and supporters.

Nick Venning, the recently appointed new Chair of ART, said: “ART has £7.5m to lend over the next three years, which is extremely good news.  We are set to increase our loan book and are actively seeking additional funding to enable us to support even more businesses.  ART’s approach is inclusive.  We will continue to help any business in need of funding that in turn supports jobs and the local West Midlands economy.”

Müller will invest £100m over the next three years to develop, manufacture and market a new generation of branded and private label yogurt and desserts products, made from milk produced by British farmers.

Already the UK's favourite yogurt and desserts brand picked from supermarket shelves 208 million times each year*, Müller aims to strengthen its leadership in parts of the category where it is already ever-present whilst introducing exciting new branded and private label products where it is currently absent.

The company plans to further grow and innovate brands including category leader Müllerlight, Müller Corner and Müller Rice, and aims to broaden their usage occasions and availability. Müller will also build on its successful licensing agreement with Mondelez to develop its range of Cadbury products, including entry to new segments of the desserts sector.

To accommodate its plans, capacity and capabilities at its three sites in Shropshire will be further upgraded, including doubling the size of the Telford facility by 2020.

Müller will also increase its marketing spend by almost 25% over the next three years, ensuring that its growing portfolio of branded products benefit from sustained and focused support in line with the company's ambitions.

Plans for its yogurt and desserts business are guided by a category vision which identified a potential £233m of yogurt and desserts category growth by 2020, to be delivered by bringing excitement, innovation and game changing new products to the market.

Already this year, Müller has successfully introduced a range of 'Big Pot' yogurts, its first ever whipped fat free Greek style yogurt and its first branded shareable dessert.

It has announced the arrival of Müller White Velvet, injecting new excitement into the plain yogurt sector in the UK, and two Müller Corner SKUs with spoons to target the growing food to go market.

And most recently, the company introduced Müller Rice 5 Grains which includes white rice, barley, spelt, millet and wheat, a perfect on-the-go snack for hungry consumers, whether that's after the gym or the rush hour commute.

Müller has also extended its successful partnership with British Athletics so that it has branding and activation rights for six major athletics events in 2018 and 2019.

Bergen Merey, Managing Director of Müller Yogurt & Desserts said:

“This unprecedented level of investment will ensure that we can offer an increasing portfolio of great yogurt and desserts products made in Britain with milk from British farmers, which meet the needs of our customers.

“Müller's approach in the UK within the yogurt and desserts and milk and ingredients sectors, is to grow our capabilities so that we can reduce the UK's dependence on imported dairy products, and build a vibrant future for the British dairy industry.”

A senior Sandwell councillor has been appointed a SCAMbassador and joined a national campaign to reduce fraud and criminal financial abuse, referred to as scams.

Councillor Elaine Costigan, cabinet member for health and public protection, is backing the council's involvement in the national Friends Against Scams initiative and urging people to become SCAMfriends.

The scheme aims to tackle the lack of scams awareness by providing information about scams and those who can fall victim to them.

People can become SCAMfriends by attending a short 40-minute session locally or by competing an online learning session.

The council’s trading standards team has been busy recruiting eight SCAMchampions – people who run short scam awareness sessions, resulting so far in 200 SCAMfriends - as well as two SCAMbassadors.

SCAMbassadors such as Councillor Costigan, use their influence to highlight the problem, change people’s perceptions and make the fraud and financial abuse a local, regional and national topic of conversation.

Recent scam cases in Sandwell have included a Tipton woman in her eighties who was conned out of £150,000 and had been targeted over several years, and a Great Barr man in his nineties, who lost more than £300,000.

Councillor Costigan, said: “Scams affect the lives of millions of people. People who become victims often experience loneliness, shame and isolation.

“Sadly our own trading standards team hear of far too many heart-rending cases where Sandwell people have been cheated by these fraudsters with the elderly and vulnerable often being systematically targeted.

“Since joining up with the National Trading Standards Scam Team in 2013, the council has supported more than 500 residents including some who have been repeat victims of scams, and in some cases have recovered some of the money they have lost.

"Through the campaign, we will continue to raise awareness by creating SCAMfriends. Information is the scammer’s enemy and by raising awareness we will continue to work against them.”

Joining Councillor Costigan in taking a stand against scams is director of prevention and protection Stuart Lackenby, who has also become a SCAMbassador.

He said: “Anyone can become a SCAMfriend  by attending a Friends Against Scams awareness session in person or completing online learning. They can learn how to identify different types of fraud and how to spot and support a victim.

"With their increased knowledge and awareness, they can then make scams part of everyday conversation with their family, friends and neighbours helping to protect themselves and others.”

Awareness sessions are being run by SCAM champions who are trained and supported by the National Trading Standards Scams team.

Sessions will also be run during Sandwell's Safer 6 campaign which runs from Saturday 23 September to Sunday 5 November.

An exciting line-up of brave business individuals have been coerced into performing a live, five-minute original stand-up comedy routine in front of their colleagues, clients, friends and family in a bid to be crowned ‘Wolverhampton Stand Up Challenge Winner’.

The daring, unwitting participants that have already signed up to months of secret preparation and training to boldly take on the 2017 Stand Up Challenge are:

• Andy Cox, Managing Director at Cox & Plant
• Jan Denning, Commercial Sales Director at Wolverhampton Racecourse
• Dawn Owen, Director at Bodykraft
• Kevin Rogers, Chief Executive at Paycare
• Malcolm Wright, Business Entrepreneur

Jan Denning, Commercial Sales Director at Wolverhampton Racecourse commented, “My tummy is already doing flips at the thought. That aside, I’m looking forward to learning about this art and feeling proud that we did it - a group of local business people working together, having lots of fun and raising some money along the way. I just hope security do bag searches for any rotten tomatoes!”

Entrepreneur, Malcolm Wright known locally for his management role at the Wolverhampton Ramada Park Hall Hotel & Spa and his subsequent impact on the region, commented on his forthcoming participation, “I feel sick to my stomach about doing the Stand Up Challenge, but I have agreed to do it to take myself out of my comfort zone. It’s one thing I’m particularly poor at: telling jokes and being in front of an audience with lights shining down on me like something out of Shawshank redemption.”

The evening will be hosted by comedian, Jarred Christmas, and it promises to be a night of extreme entertainment, whilst raising funds for local community interest company, Creative Black Country - who work with local people to discover, explore and grow an exciting and meaningful programme of arts activity in the Black Country.

Sajida Carr from Creative Black Country said, “This is a great new initiative for the Black Country and one which I am confident will go down extremely well. Creative Black Country is very excited to be involved in such entertaining projects which make the most of the Black Country through arts and culture.”

The Stand Up Challenge, sponsored by the Black Country Chamber of Commerce and the Black Country Business Festival, also forms part of the Funny Things – a new Festival to celebrate Black Country humour that runs from 23rd October to 5th November 2017.

Corin Crane, chief executive of the Black Country Chamber of Commerce said, “The Black Country has a strong history in comedy and continues to thrive throughout the region today. Initiatives like this bring this sector to the forefront even more. The business community spends its 'life' being serious, so this is its chance to have a laugh in aid of a good cause.

“The Chamber is proud to support innovative ideas such as this and the Black Country Business Festival. As well as bringing the business community together, they raise the profile of the Black Country by highlighting what a fantastic place it is to live, work and do business. It’s even better that we can show we have a sense of humour at the same time!”

The underlying strength of the rental market has been emphasised once more by new statistics that show rental prices are continuing to rise, despite more property stock becoming available to tenants.

Rightmove’s most recent Rental Price Tracker shows asking rents outside London in the second quarter of 2017 were 2.8 per cent up on the previous quarter. While some may expect a rise in rents to be at least partially a result of low supply, the opposite was in fact true with property availability up by seven per cent in comparison with Q2 in 2016.

Allison Thompson, managing director at property specialist Leaders, says: “Some experts believed the supply of rental properties would fall this year due to economic and political concerns, but this has certainly proved not to be the case.

“In fact, supply is growing in all regions across the country and high tenant demand for all types of properties means rental prices are also on the up, providing landlords with a golden opportunity to benefit from more people looking for rented accommodation and a booming market that allows them to enjoy a significant return on investment.

“This trend is also good news for tenants who are faced with more choice on the rental market and a greater chance of finding their perfect home.

“We expect rents to continue to rise through the remainder of 2017 and into 2018, making buying to let a lucrative investment that will deliver low voids and high yields.”

Rightmove’s research identified the most in-demand areas of all, with Oldham, Stirling, Folkestone, Stockport and Welwyn Garden City attracting the highest tenant demand outside London.

It also found the greatest annual increase in rents has come in the north-west, where prices are three per cent higher than in 2016. This was followed by the East Midlands, which has witnessed a 2.3 per cent hike.

More grandparents than parents are helping first-time buyers make their first move on to the housing ladder, independent research shows.

The nationwide study shows more than a third (34%) of estate agents have seen a rise in first-time buyers being helped by grandparents compared with 26% who report an increase in parents helping out children. Around a fifth (21%) of estate agents say first-time buyers are being helped by parents and grandparents.

Mortgage experts are warning the growth rate of first-time buyer numbers will slow this year after hitting record levels in 2016 although the Council of Mortgage Lenders says the number first-time buyers was up 8% in the past year.

Equity release referral service Key Partnerships study shows estate agents share the concern – half (49%) of those questioned say they are worried about the withdrawal of Government schemes to help first-time buyers. The Help to Buy mortgage guarantee scheme funding lenders offering higher loan-to-value loans ended at the start of the year but equity loans and Help to Buy ISAs continue.

Estate agents are increasingly aware of the role of equity release plans in helping grandparents release money to help first-time buyers – 60% of those questioned know it can be used to support first-time buyers and more than half (54%) are interested in finding out more.

Around half of estate agents (49%) believe equity release plans are a solution for first-time buyers and 52% say they would highlight them as a solution if they had a relationship with a specialist adviser.

Will Hale, director at Key Partnerships, said: “The financial pressure on first-time buyers to raise the money for a deposit means grandparents are starting to play a bigger role than parents.

“Grandparents however need to think carefully about how they will fund grandchildren and plan ahead so they are not doing so at a cost to their own financial well-being in retirement. That should include looking at releasing equity from their homes.

“Estate agents are valued as a source of financial guidance and those who can discuss equity release as a potential alternative fund-raising solution will be able to benefit from an additional revenue stream by referring potential clients to a specialist.”

Key Partnerships is increasingly focussing on customers referred by introducers including estate agents and has allocated a number of dedicated Key Retirement advisers experienced in dealing with the complexities of interest-only.

Key Partnerships is a B2B referral service providing a whole of market equity release solution for introducers and their clients, through parent company Key Retirement; leading specialist provider of financial solutions to the over 55’s. Over 7,000 introducers encompassing IFAs, mortgage brokers, accountants, solicitors and estate agents are registered to refer business to Key Partnerships. In return for the referral, intermediaries earn on average £1,319 on completion of the loan.

City of Wolverhampton’s Business Week flagship event will this year be hosted by one of TV’s shining lights.

Broadcaster and journalist Steph McGovern will also be the keynote speaker at the annual Business Breakfast on Wednesday, September 27.

As one of the country’s most-esteemed business reporters, she has reported on business and finance from around the world, from international finance summits to small business success stories.

During the financial crash, Steph was a lead producer of business news, at the forefront of the award-winning coverage of the credit crunch and banking crisis.

City of Wolverhampton Council Cabinet Member for City Economy, Councillor John Reynolds, said: “We are delighted to have captured such an eminent figure to host the city’s annual Business Breakfast.

“This event is invaluable to businesses of all sizes in Wolverhampton to exchange ideas and I’m sure Steph will provide a hugely interesting insight based on her experiences.”

Business Week is a week-long programme which aims to support the city’s economic growth.

It will run from Monday, September 25 to Friday 29 and incorporates a range of events, activities and workshops for businesses, shaped by business representatives in the city.

The full programme of events can be viewed at www.investwolverhampton.com/bizweek and offers something for businesses of all types and sizes.

There are plenty of opportunities to tap into free business support and get help with developing workforce skills. Businesses can book now to join in ‘live’ advice on trading with Europe or find out about future contracts and tendering opportunities.

There are also drop in events to discover how technologies can enhance businesses and tap into information on business security.

A tour of Europe’s largest Construction Centre of Excellence at the University of Wolverhampton’s Springfield Campus is available.

There is even the chance to develop team work by entering a team of four in the ‘It’s a Knockout’ Teamwork Challenge’ with WV Active

The resilience of the property market has once again been highlighted by new figures that show asking prices are continuing to rise.

Rightmove’s latest House Price Index reveals the average price of a property coming to the market this month is 3.1 per cent higher than in August 2016. It comes after statistics for July noted a 2.8 per cent annual hike in asking prices.

The index highlights a number of regional variations, with several counties identified as currently enjoying an annual hike in house prices of more than double the national average. The three most prosperous markets are named as Northamptonshire (a 9.1 per cent increase in the last year), Derbyshire (7.9 per cent) and Norfolk (7.4 per cent).

They are followed by Nottinghamshire (7.1 per cent), Bedfordshire (seven per cent), Worcestershire (seven per cent) and Leicestershire (6.9 per cent).

In terms of wider regions, the East Midlands (6.8 per cent) and West Midlands (5.8 per cent) led the way.

Kevin Shaw, national sales director at estate agents Leaders, says: “These figures, which are backed up by our own findings, clearly demonstrate the resilience of the housing market after last year’s historic Brexit vote.

“With the London market now well beyond the reach of many buyers, we have seen a definite ripple effect to the more affordable regions that have good transport links to either the capital or other large cities and towns. Many also benefit from infrastructure initiatives, such as HS2 and other urban regeneration projects.

“Birmingham is a notable hotspot, rivalling Manchester for second city status. Most crucially, unlike London and the south-east, house prices are within the reach of first-time buyers.

“Demand for rented property in these areas is also exceptionally high, enticing buy-to-let investors looking for inexpensive opportunities to invest. All these factors have driven demand and above average asking price increases over the last 12 months.”

Business leaders in Greater Birmingham say a freeze in inflation should not deflect from underlying problems that exist in the economy.

The Consumer Price Index measure of inflation remained at 2.6 per cent for the second consecutive month, despite forecasts that it would go up.

The Office for National Statistics said the largest downward pressure last month came from a fall in fuel prices.

This was offset by smaller upward contributions from a range of goods and services, including clothing, household goods, gas and electricity, and food and non-alcoholic beverages.

Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce chief executive Paul Faulkner said: “Today’s inflation results confounded predictions as the rate stayed the same for the second consecutive month.

“Much of this was down to a fall in petrol prices (a trend which started back in March) which countered upward pressure from increases to food, gas and electricity prices.

“The latest figures suggest that UK inflation might peak at a lower level than previously predicted and it remains to be seen whether today’s results will impact the Bank of England’s thinking around potentially raising interest rates in the near term.

“Despite the positive news, we shouldn’t lose sight of the fact that wage growth is still lagging behind the rate of inflation and this will continue to have an impact on consumer spending power, a key driver of economic growth in the UK.

“Next week sees the start of surveying for our latest Quarterly Business Report and it will be interesting to see whether local businesses are still showing resilient levels of growth despite ongoing concerns around inflationary pressures and fluctuating exchange rates.”

With the return of GBBO in just a few short weeks, baking fans across the UK are dusting off the weighing scales, donning their aprons and hoping for some brilliant bakes. Ahead of the 12 week baking marathon, here Sainsbury's predicts five top food trends expected to hit our screens from episode one.

Alternative sugars; Those in the know are opting for alternative sugars such as coconut and date syrup, experimenting beyond the traditional caster sugar to achieve different results. Sainsbury's, whose baking aisle features an extensive range, has seen products such as Organic Rice Malt Syrup up 148% and Date Syrup up 32% since they arrived in store.

Boozy baking; 2016 saw contestants adding a ginny twist to their recipes for a more grown-up bake. Expect to see more of this in 2017 as contestants look to their take boozy bakes to new levels with tipples such as Prosecco, Gin & Tonic and Rum.

Garnishes and glitter; The recent launch of Edible Blossoms in Sainsbury's saw packs flying off the shelves, with the demand surpassing sales expectations. Now widely available, they're a beautiful way to give cakes a show-stopping quality, whilst adornments such as edible glitter, shimmer pearls and luxurious gold leaf nod to this year's beauty trends.

Autumnal tones; As summer turns to autumn, rainbow and unicorn bakes will become a thing of the past. This year's bakers will be channelling more muted and neutral tones in the style of Chetna Makan's favourite shade of mustard

Botanical and herb flavourings; Already popular on restaurant menus, expect to see contestants experimenting with botanical flavours in both sweet and savoury bakes, such as angelica root, thyme, rosemary, black pepper, saffron and fennel.

Former Great British Bake Off semi-finalist Chetna Makan says: “Every year baking trends change and evolve, often reflected within Great British Bake Off. In my experience, what was trendy and current in the baking world definitely influenced my recipes and baking decisions on the show. This year, expect to see a lot more neutral icing shades and unusual decorations such as edible flowers in both the show-stoppers and signature bakes.”

Sioned Read, Sainsbury's buyer for home baking added “Bake Off always has a huge impact on customer behaviour which we see reflected in sales from the baking and food aisles. For example, in 2016 after the contestants created Jaffa cakes, searches for Orange Jelly increased by 150% overnight on our groceries website. I'm always on the lookout for the signature ingredients of the season and aim to deliver an exciting range that allows customers to recreate the challenges at home. Based on recent baking trends, I expect our new Prosecco flavouring, alternative sugars and edible gold leaf will be firm favourites for 2017.”

As South Korea prepares for the largest winter sporting event in its history, LG Electronics (LG) is focusing on improving automated services at the main hub for the world’s travellers – Incheon International Airport (IIA). Starting on July 21, LG will put into trial service a number of Airport Guide Robots and Airport Cleaning Robots at the award-winning airport to assist travellers arriving and departing Korea. The Airport Guide Robot will roam the airport providing information and assistance to visitors while the Airport Cleaning Robot will be on hand to keep the floors impeccably clean.

By dispatching its robots to one of the largest and busiest airports in the world, LG will be able to provide its robotic services to approximately 57 million travellers who pass through the airport every year. While the robots are officially going into trial service today, they have been a familiar presence to frequent travellers since February, when they began beta testing at IIA. LG engineers have been fine tuning the robots for the past five months, improving their performance based on the data and experience collected during the beta test.

Equipped with LG’s voice recognition platform, the Airport Guide Robot understands four different languages – Korean, English, Chinese, and Japanese – the four most popular languages spoken at the airport, in order to provide assistance verbally. The robot can connect to the airport’s central server to provide information regarding boarding time and locations of restaurants, shops, and much more. With a quick scan of a boarding pass, the Airport Guide Robot can escort the late or lost traveller to the right departure gate on time.

The Airport Cleaning Robot takes LG HOM-BOT’s powerful cleaning performance, autonomous navigation, and object-avoidance capability and applies them to a commercial, public environment. This robot detects the areas that require the most frequent cleaning, stores those locations in its database and calculates the most efficient routes to get there.

With these airport robots, LG is demonstrating its initiative to develop and expand its commercial robot business as a future growth engine. Currently, LG’s robot business is divided into two sectors: home and commercial. LG’s home robots include the HOM-BOT vacuum cleaner and the new Hub Robot while LG’s commercial business consists of robots specially designed to provide services in public areas such as airports, hotels and banks.

“LG is dedicated to the advancement and development of its robot technologies which includes navigation, voice recognition, natural language processing, and of course, DeepThinQ,” said Song Dae-hyun, president of LG Electronics Home Appliance and Air Solutions Company. “It is this kind of effort and innovation that will drive LG forward in the Fourth Industrial Revolution.”

A Wolverhampton business has announced multi-million-pound expansion plans following support from City of Wolverhampton Council’s business growth team.

Metal Spraying (UK) Limited (MSUK Group), a privately-owned Bilston-based manufacturer and distributor of construction and scaffolding products, has acquired Cannock-based Scaffolding & Construction Products Limited (SCP) from Alumasc PLC.

The MS UK Group, located in Meadow Lane, was established by Wolverhampton-born entrepreneur Ranjit Dale in 1999, and its acquisition of SCP creates one of the largest independently owned distribution specialists for construction products in the UK with a combined turnover of £20 million.

Dale said: “We’ve worked closely with Alumasc for almost 20 years and have made this investment to safeguard jobs and ensure long-term certainty of supply for the construction industry.

“SCP is a perfect fit with the range of products we produce at MS UK Group, and, together, we plan to expand the range of products and services we offer to help our customers improve performance.

“Our growth plans for the next five years will also generate additional business and employment opportunities in the Wolverhampton area, and we are grateful to City of Wolverhampton Council for the support they have shown for this venture.”

The council is providing business support through ERDF-funded programme AIM (Black Country Advice Investment and Markets), helping with growth potential, inward investment, and market development.

AIM pools the resources of the four Black Country local authorities, University of Wolverhampton, and Black Country Chamber of Commerce, to provide specialist consultancy to Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) via the Black Country Growth Hub.

City of Wolverhampton Council Deputy Leader, Councillor Peter Bilson, said: “It is excellent news for the city and the Black Country, in terms of investment and jobs, to see Metal Spraying (UK)’s growth.

“It demonstrates the business environment in Wolverhampton remains buoyant.

“There is an excellent business support structure in the Black Country accessed through a wide-range of partners and programmes such as the AIM programme.”

A multitude of issues have the potential to force a landlord to deduct money from a tenant’s deposit to pay for repairs, with a new study revealing broken furniture to be the most common cause of all.

Breaks to chairs, tables and other items are the most common reason behind landlords withholding cash from a deposit return, with 29 per cent of tenants claiming to have experienced this.

Marks on the walls have led to a deduction for 24 per cent of tenants, while 21 per cent of those renting a home have been penalised for carpet stains, 12 per cent for redecorations and nine per cent for the presence of mould.

Allison Thompson, managing director at property specialist Leaders, says: “Deposits are essential for landlords as they provide security that any damage caused by tenants can be repaired at no financial loss.

“However, deposit deductions can cause disputes between landlords and tenants, so it is important to understand what causes them and how both parties can reduce the likelihood of such issues occurring.”

Leaders’ figures for its managed tenancies show that just over 45 per cent of tenant deposits are subject to a deduction at the end of the tenancy, but less than three per cent of those progress to a dispute.

Allison adds: “The figures clearly underline the benefit to landlords of using a professional letting agents as, if a tenancy is well managed with a detailed inventory drawn up and a proper check in and check out process, there is a much smaller chance of a dispute over the deposit arising when a tenant moves out.

“In a typical month just 2.9 per cent of our deposit returns result in a dispute, while 33.5 per cent are returned in full and a further 41.5 per cent are returned after a partial deduction.

“Disputes are less likely to arise because of the thorough inventory and schedule of condition that we draw up at the start of the tenancy and the comprehensive checkout we undertake at the end. Any loss or damage to the landlord’s property that may occur during the tenancy can be easily detected and the necessary evidence provided to support a claim from the deposit. This is just one of the ways in which we minimise risk for landlords.”

For more information or advice on letting a property or holding a deposit contact your local Leaders branch.

For the third year running, Sandwell Council has published details of the borough’s 50 fastest-growing businesses – giving a snapshot on firms that employ more than 6,500 people and have a combined revenue of £1.5 billion.

The Top 50 list celebrates the companies’ achievements, as well as the economic contribution they make to the West Midlands.

The Top 50 Fastest Growing Companies Index 2017 was released with a networking breakfast at The Hawthorns in West Bromwich yesterday (Thursday 27 July), where representatives from nearly 100 businesses and partners gathered in celebration of Sandwell’s latest success stories.

The index lists the 50 top-ranked companies in Sandwell in terms of rate of growth in turnover.

Collectively the companies employ 6,500 people and have a combined revenue of £1.5 billion.

Twenty-seven of the 50 companies listed have shown growth of 10% or more in the past year. The 12 fastest growing companies have enjoyed growth of 20% or more, while the highest revenue growth rate – from transport operator Diamond Bus – is 44%.

More than half of these businesses are engaged in manufacturing, while 22% operate in the wholesale and retail sector.

Transport and haulage contractor Sheldon Clayton Logistics is at number 43 in the index with a solid 3.8 per cent growth in turnover.

The West Bromwich company started life around 40 years ago, servicing the North Sea oil boom. Today its strategy of “better business not more business” helps maintain stability and steady growth even through times of economic difficulty.

“We are a tough lot in the Black Country,” said group chairman and founder David Sheldon, referring to the entrepreneurial spirit of the region.

Councillor Steve Eling, Leader of Sandwell Council, said the UK’s economic and political circumstances are making trading tougher than usual and that the companies that made this year’s Top 50 index should feel prouder than ever.

“The success of Sandwell’s Top 50 can only reflect hard work, great leadership, commitment and foresight.

“Their growth also demonstrates Sandwell’s position as a profitable place in which to operate. Our borough is ideally located at the heart of England and well connected by road, rail and air. We have a highly skilled workforce and a strong heritage of manufacturing,” he said.

“The wider West Midlands’ spirit of innovation has always helped us ride out waves of political and economic uncertainty.”

At the networking event, local business people networked with like-minded professionals (including representatives from the Top 50), made new contacts and heard from Sandwell Council about its work to support local businesses, and its vision for the future of the borough.