Ilford Imaging is to shed 130 jobs at its photographic materials business near Knutsford, as it restructures itself in line with new digital technologies. [22-Dec-2000]
Abbeycrest has acquired Brown & Newirth, the designer and manufacturer of wedding rings, for £4.7m. [22-Dec-2000]
United Utilities is to buy the non-regulated water supply and waste water operations of Hyder from Western Power Distribution for £75m, allowing WPD to focus on Hyder's power business. [22-Dec-2000]
Marconi is to sell Woods Air Movement to Compass Capital Partners for £53m, and has also announced the acquisition of the Telit Networks mobile radio business in Italy for £11m. [22-Dec-2000]
NSK-RHP, the Japanese bearing manufacturer, is to move its European headquarters from Nottingham to Maidenhead in June with the transfer of 40 jobs, while a further 60 staff will move to Newark. [21-Dec-2000]
Parker Hirst is to shed 70 jobs by closing its sportswear factory at Longton, North Staffordshire, and by reducing the workforce at the Scott Lidgett factory in Longport. [21-Dec-2000]
Highland Galvanisers is planning to build a £3m galvanising and powder coating factory at Cumbernauld by August 2001, and a preferred bidder for the contract will be announced next month. [21-Dec-2000]
Bredero Price Coaters is to create 220 jobs in Leith to carry out pipeline work on a North Sea contract. [20-Dec-2000]
Northern Ireland Jeans is to shed up to 220 jobs at its jeans factories at Springtown in Derry and Newtownards in County Down. [20-Dec-2000]
Derbyshire County Council is to install solar-powered lights in its bus shelters. [19-Dec-2000]
Slenderella is planning to double its 12-strong workforce in Belper over the next year due to rising demand for its garments. [19-Dec-2000]
Racal Survey is planning to set up a new £5m base next to Aberdeen Airport to provide satellite positioning services for the offshore oil industry, and its local workforce will grow from 140 to 170. [19-Dec-2000]
Verilab, the newly-formed semiconductor engineering consultancy, is planning to create up to 20 jobs next year. [19-Dec-2000]
Shani Fashion Industries is to shed 40% of the 40-strong workforce at its Kirk Sandall clothing warehouse near Doncaster in order to transfer the work to Watford and Lithuania. [18-Dec-2000]
City Technology has bought Marconi Applied Technology, the Chelmsford-based gas sensors business, for £4.3m and is transferring the work to its Portsmouth site. [18-Dec-2000]
Rentokil Initial has sold its Initial GWS mobile crane business to Ainscough for about £10m, which is expected to lead to the closure of the GWS head office in Stockton. [18-Dec-2000]
Coats Viyella is to acquire the industrial sewing thread operation of Dollfus Mieg of France for undisclosed terms. [18-Dec-2000]
MacKellar Engineering is to create 28 jobs at a new fabrication workshop in Grantown-on-Spey to produce components for sub-sea wellhead systems and offshore installations. [15-Dec-2000]
William Baird is negotiating a £88m management buy-out with the support of venture capital group Alchemy Partners. [15-Dec-2000]
Bodycote International is to acquire Lindberg, the US heat treatment company, for £70m. [15-Dec-2000]
Gelfer, the Glasgow-based hat and tie manufacturer, has gone into liquidation, putting 60 jobs at risk. [14-Dec-2000]
Kenwood Appliances, the manufacturer of kitchen equipment, has received a takeover approach from an unnamed company. [14-Dec-2000]
Woo One Corporation is to create 300 jobs in Hartlepool, having won a contract to produce microwave oven doors for Samsung. [13-Dec-2000]
Frayling Furniture is to shed 60 of the 495 jobs at its furniture factories in Burslem and Hanley, and a further 40 jobs will be lost with the closure of its plant in Bury. [13-Dec-2000]
Monotub Industries is planning to raise £3m in a share placing to launch its innovative new washing machine into the rest of Europe. [13-Dec-2000]
ABCO Engineering Hydraulics has bought the franchise and assets of Pirtek Lincolnshire, the on-site hose replacement specialist, for undisclosed terms. [12-Dec-2000]
Coats Viyella's former contract clothing business is to shed 1,200 jobs following last week's acquisition by Marplace, with the closure of factories in Alfreton and Sutton in Ashfield. [12-Dec-2000]
Imperial Tobacco has bought the Mayfair cigarette vending business from TM Group for £38m. [12-Dec-2000]
Hymatic, the cryogenics and aerospace engineer, has undergone a £53m management buy-out. [12-Dec-2000]
McLeod Russel is to acquire Luwa, the manufacturer of filters for ultra-clean applications, from Zellweger of Switzerland for £18m. [12-Dec-2000]
Alenia Marconi is to recruit 50 new staff in Chelmsford having won a £260m contract to supply the tracking radar for the Royal Navy's Seawolf missile system. [11-Dec-2000]
David Brown is to shed up to 100 jobs at its Huddersfield-based engineering business, as part of a plan to base its Radicon gears business at Penistone and close down Radicon operations at Lockwood, Sunderland and Harrow in Middlesex. [11-Dec-2000]
Invensys is to shed 27 jobs at its APV food equipment operations across the country, including the closure of a service centre in Derby. [07-Dec-2000]
Carclo has acquired Alan Group, the Horsham-based precision tooling and moulding company, for £6.9m. [07-Dec-2000]
Character Group is to shed about 100 jobs in its toy distribution business, including 30 in Oldham, in order to make savings of £1.8m a year. [06-Dec-2000]
Belleek Pottery is to create 50 jobs in Fermanagh, in a £2.5m investment that will increase production and expand exports. [06-Dec-2000]
Courtaulds Textiles is to close its lingerie factory in Wrexham with the loss of 167 jobs, having failed to find a buyer. [06-Dec-2000]
Tinsley Wire has laid off about 40 workers at its wire factory in Sheffield, due to a fall in demand. [06-Dec-2000]
Wyko is to acquire Lilleshall, the distributor of fasteners, for about £20m. [06-Dec-2000]
Corus is expected to close one of its main steel plants and shed a further 8,000 jobs early next year, due to weak prices in Europe. [06-Dec-2000]
Brooks Service Group, the linen rental and services company, is to undergo a £26m management buy-out. [06-Dec-2000]
Heller Machine Tools is planning to double the output at its Redditch factory, with the creation of 32 jobs for assembly fitters. [05-Dec-2000]
Wellman Graham is planning to relocate its heavy engineering business to Oldbury by March 2001, with the loss of up to 80 jobs in Gloucester. [05-Dec-2000]
Victoria Manufacturing is to shed more than 60 of the 86 jobs at its textiles factory in Leek, due the impact of cheap imports on its scarf and headwear division. [05-Dec-2000]
Coats Viyella has sold its contract clothing business to management for £12m, thereby preventing the lossmaking division from being closed with the loss of 3,000 jobs. [05-Dec-2000]
Cobham is to acquire an electronic fuel systems business from BAe Systems for £64m, in order to expand its flight refuelling subsidiary. [05-Dec-2000]
Martin International has raised £3.7m from the sale of an equity stake to a privately-owned Hong Kong company, in order to fund the expansion of its textiles business into the US and Japanese markets. [04-Dec-2000]
William Baird is selling its BMB menswear business to a management team for £19m. [04-Dec-2000]
Precision Steel is planning to close its steel stockholding operation in Wednesbury next year with the loss of 90 jobs, unless a buyer can be found. [04-Dec-2000]
Glen Dimplex has agreed to acquire Stoves, the Preston-based cooker manufacturer, for £12m. [04-Dec-2000]
Alps Electric is considering plans to close its Arbroath plant with the loss of 200 jobs, in order to consolidate its TV and video tuner manufacturing at larger plants in Milton Keynes and the Czech Republic. [01-Dec-2000]
Lister-Petter, the Gloucestershire diesel engine manufacturer, is to shed 270 jobs, close its foundry and sell its 90-acre Dursley site to the South West of England Regional Development Agency. [01-Dec-2000]
Smiths Industries is to shed about 90 jobs at its Bishop's Cleeve aerospace engineering site near Cheltenham, as part of an efficiency drive. [30-Nov-2000]
Wesley Jessen PBH is to shed 360 jobs at its contact-lens manufacturing facility in Hampshire, as US parent company CIBA Vision wants to transfer production to sites in other countries. [29-Nov-2000]
Nomura International is to acquire Hyder Business Services, the supplier of business process outsourcing services to local authorities, from Hyder for £100m. [29-Nov-2000]
Lonmin is planning to spend up to £300m on the acquisition of mining operations in South Africa and other countries. [29-Nov-2000]
Lattice Group has won a £314m contract to provide and maintain vehicles and equipment for London's fire authority. [29-Nov-2000]
Dewhirst has announced plans to shed about 90 jobs at clothing factories in Hull and London. [28-Nov-2000]
Marconi is planning to recruit a further 200 engineers and factory staff at its Applied Technologies business in Chelmsford. [27-Nov-2000]
Courtaulds Textiles is planning to close a Ladieswear factory in Peterlee with the loss of 370 jobs. [27-Nov-2000]
Dodd Group is to create 25 new jobs in King's Lynn, having won a £4m contract from a gas supply company to build and install telemetry information panels at 1,500 locations around the UK. [24-Nov-2000]
Scapa is looking to spend up to £150m on acquisitions to expand its technical tapes business, and is particularly interested in North America and Europe. [24-Nov-2000]
Delta is planning to sell the holding company of its United Power electrical equipment business to Danaher of the US for £70m. [23-Nov-2000]
Glynwed is planning to demerge its consumer and food service division, which includes Aga cookers, from its core pipe manufacturing business. [23-Nov-2000]
British Wool Marketing Board is to set up a new depot at Kingmoor Park in Carlisle next year, with the creation of 30 jobs. [22-Nov-2000]
Trifast is to open a £2m industrial fastenings plant in Wednesbury next April with the creation of 50 jobs, and is setting up distribution facilities in Mexico and Hungary and a manufacturing base in central Europe. [22-Nov-2000]
Chapelthorpe, the fibres and wallcoverings company, is considering plans for a management buy-out. [22-Nov-2000]
Fruit of the Loom is to close a textile sewing factory in Londonderry with the loss of 150 jobs. [21-Nov-2000]
Symphony Group is to set up a £2.5m distribution centre next to its furniture factory in Templeborough, Rotherham, with the creation of about 100 jobs. [21-Nov-2000]
Pelikan Scotland is to shed 40 of the 340 jobs at its printer accessories plant in Turriff, in order to transfer some production to China. [21-Nov-2000]
Waste Recycling has won a £60m contract to provide refuse disposal services to Wigan Council. [21-Nov-2000]
Fibre Reinforced Products has been acquired by Conder Products of Hampshire, which will lead to the creation of 35 new jobs at its glass reinforced products factory in Peterlee. [20-Nov-2000]
Kvaerner Energy is to close its gas turbine equipment factory in Clydebank with the loss of 200 jobs. [17-Nov-2000]
Frederick Cooper has sold its Latham hinge and locks business in Wolverhampton to Basta of Ireland for £1.5m. [17-Nov-2000]
Aldridge Fabrications is to create a further 50 jobs at its two manufacturing sites in Birkenhead and Prenton, having won a number of roof support contracts for mines in the UK and abroad. [17-Nov-2000]
Boosey & Hawkes expects to complete the sale of its five-acre site in north London by the end of the year, and its musical instruments factory will be relocated. [17-Nov-2000]
Chubb is to acquire BBR Security, the South African provider of electronic security services, for £51m. [17-Nov-2000]
Quality Machining Services is creating 50 new jobs in Arbroath as part of a £7.6m investment programme, due to rising demand for equipment for the oil industry. [16-Nov-2000]
BBA has acquired Aircraft Service International Group, the US aviation services company based in Florida, for £106m. [16-Nov-2000]
Imerys Minerals has announced a restructuring programme that will result in the loss of 80 jobs at sites in Cornwall. [15-Nov-2000]
Georgian Carpets is planning to close its factory in Kidderminster with the loss of about 60 jobs, in order to relocate production to another site in Kendal. [15-Nov-2000]
Northumbrian Water has been selected as preferred bidder to supply water and sewage services to 3.5m customers in Johannesburg, South Africa. [15-Nov-2000]
IMI has sold its Australian plumbing and heating operations to GSA Group for £9m. [14-Nov-2000]
Invertek Drives is to expand its electric motor drives factory near Welshpool with the creation of up to 30 jobs over the next three years. [13-Nov-2000]
SP Systems, the supplier of composite materials to the marine, wind energy and automotive markets, has been sold by Zoltek of the US to a management buy-out for £50m. [13-Nov-2000]
Brammer is to acquire a 51% stake in Handel Freudenberg, the German industrial components distributor, for £15m, and has an option to buy the remaining stake in 2003. [13-Nov-2000]
Sanderson Kayser, the Sheffield-based tool and die works, is being sold by Timken of the US to a management buy-in team, and the business will be renamed Sanderson Special Steels. [10-Nov-2000]
Rolls-Royce has announced plans to shed 1,300 jobs in its marine and power systems businesses, which will affect plants in Coventry, Derby and Bristol. [10-Nov-2000]
Electrocomponents is looking to sell off its Pact division, which distributes electrical products to retailers. [09-Nov-2000]
Precoat International, the steel distributor, is considering plans for a management buy-out. [08-Nov-2000]
Eliza Tinsley is to close its Nova Fabrications steel equipment factory in Coventry with the loss of more than 100 jobs, and production will be transferred to Chesterfield. [07-Nov-2000]
Mid Kent Holdings is discussing plans for a merger with three other small water companies in the south - Sutton & East Surrey Water, Portsmouth Water and Bournemouth & West Hampshire Water. [07-Nov-2000]
Headlam is planning to sell its fabrics businesses and discussions are taking place with several parties. [07-Nov-2000]
Pine Design is to close its bathroom furniture factory at the Raleigh Hall Industrial Estate near Eccleshall with the loss of more than 100 jobs. [06-Nov-2000]
Lew-Ways is to shed 54 of the 134 jobs at its toy factory in Cannock, in order to secure the long-term future of the business. [06-Nov-2000]
ABM, the Widnes-based manufacturing process automation company, has acquired Control Systems & Services for undisclosed terms. [06-Nov-2000]
Welsh Water is to be acquired by a consortium of companies and local authorities operating under the name of Glas Cymru Cyfyngedig in a £2.4bn deal. [06-Nov-2000]
ACW Technology is planning to recruit up to 100 more people over the next 12 months for a new circuit board production line in Hampshire, having formed an alliance with Tandberg Television of Hedge End. [03-Nov-2000]
Barclays Private Equity has acquired CRP, the Lancashire-based manufacturer of subsea cable equipment, in a £120m deal. [03-Nov-2000]
OyezStraker is to acquire Stat-Plus, the distributor of office supplies, for £18m. [03-Nov-2000]
Rolls-Royce is planning to close its composites manufacturing plant in Derby next year with the loss of up to 180 jobs, and production will be contracted out to Fischer Advanced Composite Components of Austria. [02-Nov-2000]
Raleigh is planning to relocate its bicycle factory and 600 employees to a new £14m site at Bulwell in Nottingham. [02-Nov-2000]
Silentnight has acquired Ducal, the Andover-based wooden furniture manufacturer, for £15m. [02-Nov-2000]
BSS, the distributor of heating and plumbing products, is in discussions with a number of potential bidders for the business. [02-Nov-2000]
Campmuir is to close its agricultural machinery dealership in Turriff in December with the loss of 13 jobs. [01-Nov-2000]
Smiths Industries is to sell Lambda Advanced Analog, its US electric power controls business, to International Rectifier Corp for £12m. [01-Nov-2000]
Humax is to invest a further £2m at its set-top boxes factory in Newtownards, Northern Ireland, with the creation of 38 jobs. [31-Oct-2000]
Eden Industries is to shed 79 of the 135 jobs at its shopfitting business in Crewkerne, Somerset. [31-Oct-2000]
Invensys is planning to shed about 90 of the 750 workers at its Brook Crompton electric motors factory in Huddersfield, in order to reduce costs and retain market share. [31-Oct-2000]
Barber & Nicholls is to close its hosiery business in Barwell, Leicestershire, with the loss of about 100 jobs. [30-Oct-2000]
Yelo, the Carrickfergus-based manufacturer of electronics testing equipment, has been acquired by Mindready Solutions of Canada for undisclosed terms. [30-Oct-2000]
Fermec is to shed up to 135 jobs at its Manchester factory in order to transfer production of mini-excavators to France and Italy. [30-Oct-2000]
Bentwood is to close its clothing factory in Runcorn at the end of the year, with the loss of more than 200 jobs. [27-Oct-2000]
Sara Lee Courtaulds is planning to sell its Penn Nyla fabric factories in Derby and Long Eaton, in order to focus on its lingerie and other clothing businesses. [27-Oct-2000]
Selkirk Manufacturing is to shed 25 of the 200 jobs at its chimney factory in Barnstaple due to a lack of orders. [27-Oct-2000]
Kaye & Co is to close its foundry in Huddersfield with the loss of 49 jobs, due to difficult trading conditions. [27-Oct-2000]
Hoover is to shed 70 jobs at its Candy fridge-freezer factory in Bromborough, Wirral. [27-Oct-2000]
Chloride is seeking acquisitions to expand its power protection business, and is particularly interested in the US. [27-Oct-2000]
Pennon is considering plans to sell its South West Water supply business in order to raise up to £150m and offset regulatory price cuts. [27-Oct-2000]
GE Caledonian is to shed 78 jobs at its gas turbine engine maintenance business in Prestwick. [26-Oct-2000]
Invensys is considering plans to sell its Power Systems division for about £3bn, prompting speculation that the company is preparing to fend off a possible hostile takeover bid. [26-Oct-2000]
Panasonic has announced plans to shed 1,300 jobs at its television factory in Cardiff in order to transfer production to the Czech Republic, but 1,000 workers will be retained to make other products. [25-Oct-2000]
Xerox is considering plans to shed jobs in the UK as part of a worldwide restructuring of its copiers business, which could affect the 2,000 workers at its factory at Mitcheldean in Gloucestershire. [25-Oct-2000]
DPT Manufacturing, the Rushden-based tie manufacturer, is going into voluntary liquidation with the loss of up to 60 jobs. [24-Oct-2000]
Ascot is to sell four engineering businesses - WDS, Flotform, Mitchell Cotts Transmissions and Peter Stubbs - to two management buy-out teams for a total of £46m, in order to focus on chemicals. [24-Oct-2000]
Darenth, the vending machine manufacturer, has undergone a management buy-out and is now planning to expand production at its Sheffield factory. [20-Oct-2000]
DH Haden is to close its kettle factory in Burntwood with the loss of up to 185 jobs, in order to transfer production to Wombourne. [20-Oct-2000]
Yale is to shed a further 75 jobs at its lock factories in Willenhall. [20-Oct-2000]
The Isle of Man Parliament has approved plans for the construction of a £43m waste incinerator at Braddan. [20-Oct-2000]
Maclaren is to close its buggy factory near Northampton with the loss of up to 140 jobs, in order to transfer production to China and Eastern Europe. [20-Oct-2000]
W Wright & Son has closed its hat factory in Luton with the loss of 40 jobs, having gone into voluntary liquidation. [20-Oct-2000]
GKN is to buy a military aircraft fuselage and wing parts factory in St Louis, Missouri, from Boeing for £44m, and has also announced plans to create a new Aerospace Services subsidiary and cut the number of plants from 11 to seven. [20-Oct-2000]
Charnos is to shed 30 jobs at its Ilkeston-based knitwear business, in order to improve efficiency. [19-Oct-2000]
Wiremold is to close its electrical products factory in Brierley Hill, which employs 110 people, and relocate production to West Bromwich and Scarborough. [19-Oct-2000]
Thyssen Engineering has set up a new fabrication workshop in Scunthorpe, where it expects to create up to 50 jobs. [19-Oct-2000]
Panasonic is to shed an unspecified number of the 2,400 jobs at its television factory in Cardiff, with the exact figure being revealed in December. [19-Oct-2000]
TI Group is to become the preferred supplier of sealing systems to BP Amoco's 80 refineries and petrochemical plants, in a deal worth up to £35m. [19-Oct-2000]
Fullmen is seeking permission to expand its engineering business on Canvey Island, with the creation of 20 new jobs. [18-Oct-2000]
Qualceram Shires is to shed 80 of the 660 jobs at its bathroom manufacturing operations in Stoke-on-Trent, Bradford, Darwen and Rochdale. [18-Oct-2000]
NDT Services, the nuclear and aero industry inspection company, is planning to open new testing laboratories in France and the Czech Republic, and may also set up a number of branches around the UK. [17-Oct-2000]
Orbit Precision Machinery is planning to create 30 new jobs over the next two years following an investment in a new hi-tech machining centre at its site in Wantage. [17-Oct-2000]
Newell Window Fashions, the manufacturer of curtain accessories, has opened a new warehouse and distribution centre in Tamworth, with the creation of 60 jobs. [17-Oct-2000]
Peter Miles Engineering has opened a new factory at Tyldesley, near Manchester, to produce spirit levels, with the creation of 35 jobs. [17-Oct-2000]
Wigan Council is in negotiations to transfer its waste disposal operation to Waste Recycling Group, which would involve the construction of a £7m recycling plant at the Kirkless landfill site in Ince. [17-Oct-2000]
Sony is to shed 400 jobs at its Pencoed plant in south Wales in order to transfer production of small screen television sets to Spain and Slovakia. [17-Oct-2000]
Achilles Group of Abingdon has raised £12m in a share issue in order to expand its internet marketplace for the utilities sector, and is preparing to move to a new headquarters with space for 165 staff. [16-Oct-2000]
Stratos Lightwave is seeking 50 new staff at its fibre optics factory in Haverhill, Suffolk, following a big increase in demand. [16-Oct-2000]
Simoco, the supplier of radio systems to emergency services, is to shed 150 jobs at its Cambridge site, in order to contract out its manufacturing. [16-Oct-2000]
Frank Usher is to sell its women's evening wear business to management for £6.9m, in order to transform itself into a cash shell called Avingtrans. [16-Oct-2000]
Silentnight is to acquire Cornwell Parker, the fabrics and furniture group, for £23m. [16-Oct-2000]
General Domestic Appliances is to invest £18m at its Hotpoint washing machine factory near Rhyl, in order to automate all stages of production and secure 1,000 jobs. [16-Oct-2000]
Metallex, the steel tubing company, is to centralise its operations in Banbury, which will involve the relocation of staff from its existing warehouses in the West Midlands and offices in Maidenhead. [13-Oct-2000]
Hussman, the Milton Keynes-based manufacturer of refrigeration units, is to shed 130 jobs in order to transfer production to Spain and Eastern Europe. [13-Oct-2000]
BAe Systems has been chosen as preferred bidder to acquire stakes in the aerospace and ordnance operations of Denel, the South African state-owned arms company. [13-Oct-2000]
Corus is to shed a further 210 jobs at its steel plants, including 100 at Port Talbot, 45 at Shotton and 65 at Teesside. [12-Oct-2000]
KV Rollers is planning a £0.9m extension at its rubber rollers factory in Cwmbran, with the creation of 10 new jobs. [12-Oct-2000]
Pilkington is to shed 80 of the 243 jobs at its Special Glass factory in St Asaph, North Wales, in order to improve productivity and secure the future of the site. [12-Oct-2000]
Morgan Crucible is selling Emblem Group, the manufacturer of computing devices for the defence sector, to a management buy-out for undisclosed terms. [12-Oct-2000]
Pell Frischmann has bought the water treatment process technology business of BG Technology for undisclosed terms. [12-Oct-2000]
Toshiba is to cut at least 100 of the 900 jobs at its television factory in Plymouth next year. [11-Oct-2000]
Nutec has announced plans for the £1m expansion of its offshore safety and survival training centre in Aberdeen, including a second training tank and additional classroom space. [11-Oct-2000]
University of Glamorgan's UGCS health and safety operation has been acquired in a management buy-out, securing 30 jobs, and will trade as Corporate Health & Safety Solutions. [11-Oct-2000]
Oxford Instruments has bought Austin Scientific, the US manufacturer of cryopumps and cryogenic coolers, for £4m. [10-Oct-2000]
Leoni Wiring Systems is to restructure its cable manufacturing business with the loss of 84 jobs at its factory in Newcastle-under-Lyme. [10-Oct-2000]
Chloride is to sell CEN Electronics, its battery charger division, to management for £3.1m, in order to focus on its core power protection business. [10-Oct-2000]
Birkin International is recruiting 10 new staff at its lace factory in Borrowash, following the recent closure of its Nottingham site. [09-Oct-2000]
Cookson is to invest £3.8m at its Vesuvius refractory plant in Sheepbridge with the creation of 60 jobs, while plants at Kings Cliffe near Peterborough and Manuel near Linlithgow will be closed. [09-Oct-2000]
Tomkins has sold its UK and US lawnmower operations to Summersong Investment of China for £151m, and the businesses sold include Hayter in Hertfordshire. [09-Oct-2000]
Mainetti is to shed up to 40 of the 400 jobs at its plastics factory in Jedburgh, following a fall in orders. [06-Oct-2000]
Servelec, the control and automation systems company, has been acquired by CSE Group of Singapore for £16m. [06-Oct-2000]
Dawson International, the textiles company, has received a takeover approach from the Guinness Peat finance house. [06-Oct-2000]
Edwards & Jones is to shed 70 jobs at its water treatment products factory at Meir in Staffordshire, in order to transfer production to the US. [05-Oct-2000]
West Sussex County Council is considering four potential sites to build incinerators to burn the county's waste. [05-Oct-2000]
Waterford Wedgwood is creating 140 new jobs at plants in Hanley and Tunstall, having won a £4m contract to produce tableware products for Williams-Sonoma of the US. [04-Oct-2000]
Goring Kerr is to relocate a weighing machine factory from Shoreham, Sussex, to a plant in Parma, Italy. [03-Oct-2000]
Colony is to close its scented giftware factory on the Isle of Wight with the loss of 50 jobs, in order to transfer production to its site in Cumbria. [03-Oct-2000]
TI Group is planning to acquire Impervia, the French aerospace sealings company, for £10m. [03-Oct-2000]
Chloride is to acquire SAED, the French supplier of power protection equipment, for £12m. [03-Oct-2000]
Severn Trent is looking to fill 150 vacancies at its new water supply call centre in Derby. [02-Oct-2000]
Toshiba is launching a new Midlands division to provide printer, copier and fax systems through its Electronic Imaging Solutions subsidiary, which will involve the creation of 35 jobs at a new office in Aldridge. [02-Oct-2000]
MKF is to shed 61 jobs at its plastics factory in Newry, County Down. [02-Oct-2000]
The Welsh Development Agency is planning to invest £50m in Welsh companies, in order to broaden the skill base of workers and increase its focus on knowledge industries. [02-Oct-2000]
Sony is planning to relocate the manufacture of a number of consumer electronics products from Japan to Europe in order to avoid currency fluctuations, and will seek an alliance with a European semiconductor company. [02-Oct-2000]
Ben Sherman is to close its shirt factory in Londonderry in November with the loss of 80 jobs. [29-Sep-2000]
Desmonds is to stop production at its clothing factory in Enniskillen with the loss of 130 jobs. [29-Sep-2000]
Utilitec, the supplier of equipment to the water industry, is to undergo a £13m management buy-out. [29-Sep-2000]
Time Products has raised £9m from the sale of its Judith Leiber handbag manufacturing business. [29-Sep-2000]
Alco Waste Management is planning to streamline its West Cumbrian waste management business, and is seeking redundancies from the 70-strong workforce. [28-Sep-2000]
Balmoral Group is shedding 90 jobs in Aberdeen, as a number of contracts in its buoyancy and marine-related operations have come to an end. [28-Sep-2000]
Smiths Industries is to acquire Fairchild Defense, the US aerospace components company, from Orbital Sciences for £69m. [28-Sep-2000]
Telemetrix is acquiring ICT Electronics, the Spanish manufacturer of testing equipment, for £19m. [28-Sep-2000]
Severfield-Rowen, the steel structure specialist, is planning to add a sixth production line to its Dalton factory near Thirsk. [27-Sep-2000]
Avesta Sheffield is planning to merge with the stainless steel division of Outokumpu of Finland, creating a new group called AvestaPolarit. [27-Sep-2000]
Thames Water is to be acquired by RWE for £4.3bn, as part of a strategy by the German company to create a pan-European multi-utility group. [26-Sep-2000]
BAe Systems has completed the acquisition of Lockheed Martin Control Systems for £349m, and expects to complete the acquisition of Lockheed Martin Aerospace Electronics Systems by the end of the year. [26-Sep-2000]
Advantage West Midlands has announced that Bidcom, the US engineering, building and e-business services company, is to set up a UK headquarters in Rugby, with the creation of 125 jobs over the next three years. [26-Sep-2000]
Mettis Group has acquired High Duty Alloys of Redditch for £42m, in order to strengthen its position in the market for aerospace forgings. [26-Sep-2000]
Parsons Brinckerhoff, the US rail engineering group, is considering plans to set up an office in Derby with the creation of 30 jobs, and is also looking at Bristol and Croydon. [26-Sep-2000]
Grampian Tractors, the Scottish agricultural machinery dealer, has ceased trading with the closure of depots in Kintore, Forres and Maud. [26-Sep-2000]
Sony is to create 300 jobs in Basingstoke with the £10m redevelopment of its television equipment factory, which will involve converting a warehouse into offices and adding cafes, a shop and fitness centre. [26-Sep-2000]
Armstrong World is to close its Gateshead-based flooring factory next year, with the loss of 55 jobs. [26-Sep-2000]
Arthur Wood, the Longport-based pottery, is planning to move all manufacturing to its main site and all warehousing to the nearby Price & Kensington factory, with the loss of 10 jobs. [25-Sep-2000]
Courtaulds Textiles is planning to close its Ladieswear factory in Blyth, with the loss of 280 jobs. [25-Sep-2000]
Bede Scientific Instruments, the manufacturer of x-ray equipment, is planning to raise £20m in a flotation, in order to reduce debt and move to larger premises in the Durham area. [25-Sep-2000]
BAe Systems has announced plans to expand its Broughton factory in north Wales with the creation of 1,700 jobs, in order to build wings for the new Airbus. [25-Sep-2000]
Cornwell Parker, the furniture and fabrics company, is planning to expand its North American sales by setting up an office in the US. [25-Sep-2000]
Lewis C Grant, the Kirkcaldy-based manufacturer of sheet metal enclosure systems, has been acquired by Segerstrom & Svensson of Sweden for £20m, which is expected to lead to the expansion of its 340-strong workforce. [22-Sep-2000]
Glen Dimplex has acquired Faber of the Netherlands, as part of a strategy to become a leading player in the global market for gas fires and domestic room heaters. [22-Sep-2000]
Cromwell Tools, the industrial equipment supplier with 1,200 employees, is building a new headquarters in Leicester. [21-Sep-2000]
Weidlinger Associates, the US engineering consultancy, is to create 20 jobs over the next five years at its new European headquarters in Dunfermline. [21-Sep-2000]
Thames Water is facing the prospect of a £4.3bn takeover offer from RWE of Germany. [21-Sep-2000]
Leicester City Council has announced plans to build a £200m waste recycling centre by 2004, and will select a site in the next few weeks. [20-Sep-2000]
Devon County Council has selected a site at the Clovelly Road Industrial Estate in Bideford to create a new £0.5m waste and recycling centre. [20-Sep-2000]
Strainstall Engineering Services, the provider of load measurement and stress analysis services, has undergone a £1.5m management buy-out from parent company TT Group. [20-Sep-2000]
Yearntree is to invest £2.3m at its office stationery factory in Newport, with the creation of 44 jobs. [20-Sep-2000]
Weatherite is installing new manufacturing equipment worth more than £1m at its Cradley Heath factory, having won a £36m contract to supply air conditioning equipment to British Telecom telephone exchanges. [20-Sep-2000]
Sulzer of Switzerland is looking to sell of its pumps business, which could threaten 300 jobs at its Leeds factory. [20-Sep-2000]
Lindale & Chambers is to shed 58 jobs at its pine furniture factory in Llandrindod Wells. [19-Sep-2000]
Stenmar of Aberdeen has acquired Sonavision, the developer of underwater sonar products, for undisclosed terms, and the two companies will move to larger premises in Bridge of Don. [19-Sep-2000]
Cape Calsil Systems is considering plans to close its insulation products factory in Washington, Tyne & Wear, next March with the loss of 125 jobs. [19-Sep-2000]
Smiths Industries is to acquire TI Group for £1.77bn, which will expand its aerospace division and give it a new sealing solutions division. [19-Sep-2000]
Invensys is to sell its pneumatics business to Parker Hannifin of the US for £27m. [19-Sep-2000]
HL Engineering has bought Engineering Diamonds and MA Engineering of Coventry, to create a combined group employing 50 staff in the supply of components to the automotive and defence industries. [18-Sep-2000]
Strix, the manufacturer of kettle thermostats, is raising about £40m from HSBC's private equity arm to fund a move into the coffee machine business. [18-Sep-2000]
James Gilbert, the manufacturer of rugby balls, has been sold to a management buy-in team for £11m. [18-Sep-2000]
Billiton, the metals and mining company, has raised £535m in a share placing in order to finance a programme of acquisitions. [18-Sep-2000]
R Griggs is to close six shoe factories in Northamptonshire with the loss of up to 350 jobs, in order to concentrate production at its four remaining sites. [18-Sep-2000]
Halma has acquired Wessex Electronics, the manufacturer of equipment to reduce leakage in the water industry, for £2m. [15-Sep-2000]
Integriti Solutions has acquired InterCorr International, the US corrosion testing and research company, for undisclosed terms. [15-Sep-2000]
Dunlop Slazenger is planning to expand its tennis balls factory in Barnsley, with the creation of 50 jobs, in order to combine its European manufacturing operations onto one site. [15-Sep-2000]
Sirdar has acquired Ryalux, the carpet manufacturer, for £25m, and has also announced the sale of its lossmaking Eversure Textiles division. [15-Sep-2000]
Hi-Tec Sports, the footwear manufacturer, is to undergo a £16m management buy-out. [15-Sep-2000]
Ash & Lacy, the metals engineer, has accepted a £69m takeover bid from Hill & Smith, but a higher offer is expected from Metnor. [14-Sep-2000]
Dyson is to invest £13m in the expansion of its vacuum cleaner factory in Malmesbury, Wiltshire, with the creation of about 100 jobs. [14-Sep-2000]
Andaray Engineering, the Gateshead-based manufacturer of industrial nuts and bolts, is considering plans to relocate 40 jobs and part of its production line to Yorkshire, following the acquisition of Sheffield-based firm Cooper & Turner. [13-Sep-2000]
Newlands Scientific is planning to raise £5m in a flotation on Aim for the commercial development of a new sound system that uses magnetostriction. [13-Sep-2000]
Basildon District Council is considering plans from Barberry House Properties for the transformation of the former Gordon's Gin site in Laindon into separate factories. [12-Sep-2000]
Jacuzzi, the luxury bath maker, is moving its UK headquarters from London to Newcastle-under-Lyme. [12-Sep-2000]
Relyon is to demerge its Photo-Scan closed circuit TV security operation through a flotation on Aim, in order to focus on the manufacture of beds and foam. [12-Sep-2000]
Infranor, the Swiss-owned engineering company, is to relocate from Horsham to South Hykeham in Lincolnshire next year, as part of a consolidation that will close sales offices in Harrogate and Bury-St-Edmunds. [11-Sep-2000]
Ingersoll-Dresser Pumps is to shed 140 of the 400 jobs at its factory in Newark. [11-Sep-2000]
Hitachi is planning to shed 350 of the 500 jobs at its television factory in Aberdare, in order to source more parts from overseas. [11-Sep-2000]
Multi Metals, the Belshill-based aluminium stockholder, has undergone a £5m management buy-out. [11-Sep-2000]
Silver Cross, the Leeds-based pram manufacturer, is to shed about 25 of its 100-strong workforce, following its recent acquisition by Manchester-based Design Company. [11-Sep-2000]
Invensys is to shed 34 of the 360 jobs at its Hawker Energy Storage industrial battery factory in Tameside, in order to relocate the manufacture of monobloc batteries to eastern Europe. [11-Sep-2000]
Biwater Industries is to close its pipe factory at Clay Cross in Derbyshire with the loss of up to 700 jobs, in order to transfer production to other Saint Gobain factories at Ilkeston and Staveley. [08-Sep-2000]
Demaglass, the Harworth-based glassware factory, has been bought by Marlin Lighting, a subsidiary of US firm Sylvania Lighting International, saving 300 jobs. [08-Sep-2000]
Monitor Audio is creating 15 new jobs following the relocation of its stereo speakers manufacturing facility to a new site in Rayleigh, Essex. [07-Sep-2000]
Lebus Furniture is to shed about 80 of the 460 jobs at its Scunthorpe upholstered furniture factory. [07-Sep-2000]
FG Wilson is creating up to 500 new jobs over the next three years, as part of a £27m investment at its diesel generator factories in Larne, Newtownabbey and west Belfast. [07-Sep-2000]
Coats Viyella has announced plans to shed 1,900 jobs in the Midlands and to close or sell its UK contract clothing operations, in order to focus on its thread business and the Jaeger and Viyella fashion brands. [07-Sep-2000]
Gallaher is to invest £40m at its recently-acquired Liggett-Ducat business in Russia, in order to increase production to 65bn cigarettes a year. [07-Sep-2000]
Shaw Group is planning to modernise its pipe factory in Derby, with part of the 16-acre site being transformed into a new industrial park for other companies. [06-Sep-2000]
Anglo Pacific is planning to develop a 40-acre reserve of industrial talcum near Lerwick in Shetland, and expand production at its marble mine in Ledmore, Sutherland. [06-Sep-2000]
Walker Greenbank is selling its John Perry and Cole & Son wallpaper operations to a new company called Karen Beauchamp for about £3m. [06-Sep-2000]
Express Engineering is planning to recruit more than 100 workers at its special-purpose equipment factory in Gateshead over the next two years, following a £5m investment. [05-Sep-2000]
Adria is to cease hosiery production at its Campsie factory in Derry, with the loss of 28 jobs. [04-Sep-2000]
Ercol is planning to relocate its furniture factory from High Wycombe to Princes Risborough next year, as part of a £20m investment. [04-Sep-2000]
Bilston & Battersea Enamels, the ceramics company, is to undergo a £3.5m management buy-out. [04-Sep-2000]
Fireplace Workshop, the Derby-based manufacturer of fireplaces, has gone into voluntary liquidation with the loss of 45 jobs. [01-Sep-2000]
Pirelli General is to shed 150 jobs at its cable manufacturing factory in Eastleigh. [31-Aug-2000]
Enbray Cooper has launched a recruitment drive at its new factory in Workington to cope with rising demand for electricity meter components. [31-Aug-2000]
AI Group has acquired the mechanical components operation of Stafford-based Alstom T&D Protection & Control for about £2m, which will involve the transfer of 150 staff. [31-Aug-2000]
Rolls-Royce's Vickers Defence Systems subsidiary has won a £250m contract to supply 66 armoured vehicles to the British Army, which should secure 500 jobs in Newcastle-upon-Tyne. [31-Aug-2000]
Corus is to invest £35m in the relining of a blast furnace at its Llanwern steel plant, which should secure the future of the site. [31-Aug-2000]
Rentokil Initial is acquiring Tru-Green Interior Plantcare, the US tropical plants business, for £30m. [31-Aug-2000]
West of Scotland Water has awarded a £100m contract to Gleeson to build a water treatment plant at Loch Katrine. [31-Aug-2000]
Sigma 3 is to create about 20 jobs at showrooms in Cardiff and Swansea, having won the franchise rights for the supply of Ripples bathrooms in Wales. [30-Aug-2000]
Prestwick Circuits is planning to shed up to 70 of the 200 jobs at its Mosshill plant in Ayr. [30-Aug-2000]
British Mohair, the textile and engineering company, has agreed a £21m takeover offer from Camellia Investments. [30-Aug-2000]
Tandem Group is to acquire Pot Black, the snooker table company, and Two Wheel trading, the distributor of bicycle accessories, for a total £1.6m. [30-Aug-2000]
IMI has acquired Flow Design, the US manufacturer of flow control products, for £14m. [29-Aug-2000]
Sherman Cooper, the shirt manufacturer, has undergone a £120m management buy-out with the backing of venture capitalist 3i. [28-Aug-2000]
Interlube Systems of Plymouth has undergone a management buy-out from Invensys, and plans to create up to 30 skilled engineering jobs. [28-Aug-2000]
Madison Filter has acquired Southwestern Wire Cloth of the US for £25m, to create a global industrial screening and separation business. [28-Aug-2000]
Billiton has announced a £1.4bn agreed takeover offer for Rio Algom, the Canadian mining group, in order to increase its share of the world copper market. [28-Aug-2000]
Qualceram of Ireland is to acquire Shires, the sanitary ware company, for £34m, and the business will be renamed Qualceram Shires. [28-Aug-2000]
Magnex Scientific is planning to build a 50,000 sq ft magnet manufacturing plant at Yarnton in Oxfordshire, with the creation of 20 new jobs. [25-Aug-2000]
Parker Pen, which employs 650 people at a factory in Newhaven, has been sold by Gillette to Newell Rubbermaid of the US, ending months of speculation that the site was to close. [25-Aug-2000]
Vacuum Generators is to extend its vacuum equipment factory near Hastings with the creation of 30 jobs. [25-Aug-2000]
Luxfer is to sell the bulk of its remaining aluminium operations to Alcoa of the US for £182m, and the proceeds will be spent on acquisitions to increase its focus on gas cylinders, zirconia products and magnesium alloys. [25-Aug-2000]
Domnick Hunter is planning to create 100 new jobs over the next year at its industrial filter factories in the North East. [24-Aug-2000]
Leeds Group is considering plans to close its Rawdon textiles plant in Leeds with the loss of 55 jobs, in order to consolidate its dyeing and twisting activities at its Langholm site near Carlisle. [24-Aug-2000]
Filtronic is to acquire Sigtek, the US developer of high-speed digital signal processing, for an initial £13m. [24-Aug-2000]
Staveley Industries has received a £70m takeover bid from Guinness Peat, its largest shareholder. [24-Aug-2000]
Finder, the Staffordshire-based supplier of relays and timers made by its parent company in Italy, is planning to create 20 new jobs following its recent relocation to larger premises at the Stone Business Park. [23-Aug-2000]
Avesta Sheffield is buying Deroulinox's stainless steel distribution centre in Tours, France, for £2m. [23-Aug-2000]
Mitre Furnishing Group is planning to create up to 67 jobs at a new household textiles factory in Merthyr Tydfil. [22-Aug-2000]
Galgon of the US is planning a £1.4m expansion at its electronics design and manufacturing facility in Glenrothes, with the creation of 50 new jobs. [22-Aug-2000]
Powell Duffryn has acquired Norba, the Finnish manufacturer of parts for refuse vehicles, for £7m. [22-Aug-2000]
Barbour, the manufacturer of waxed jackets, is to shed 45 jobs at its three North East sites, in order to improve efficiency. [18-Aug-2000]
Drummond is planning to shed up to 100 jobs at its textiles factory in Bradford. [17-Aug-2000]
British Buttons, the York-based button manufacturer with 31 staff, has undergone a management buy-out for undisclosed terms. [17-Aug-2000]
Ingersoll-Dresser Pumps is to close its Gateshead factory later this year with the loss of 284 jobs, following a decision by its parent company to rationalise sites worldwide. [17-Aug-2000]
Optokem has set up a new optronics laboratory at the St Asaph Business Park in Denbighshire, and plans to create up to 20 jobs. [17-Aug-2000]
Hyder, the Welsh utility, is expected to be acquired by Western Power Distribution of the US for £565m, as the Takeover Panel has dismissed an attempt by Nomura to stop the deal. [17-Aug-2000]
Duke Street Capital has announced a £50m deal to acquire a 51% stake in Hertfordshire-based waste management group Wastepack, and plans to develop up to eight new plastics recycling factories across the country. [16-Aug-2000]
East of Scotland Water is supporting plans from the National Engineering Laboratory to develop a supply of recycled water from the Clyde and Forth and Union canals for low-grade manufacturing use. [16-Aug-2000]
Pressac is to acquire Smith & Sons (Scotland), the plastic mouldings company, for up to £24m. [16-Aug-2000]
Pifco is planning to launch 50 new houseware products this year and is also seeking further acquisitions. [16-Aug-2000]
British Mohair, the textile and engineering company, has rejected a £20m takeover approach from Browallia International of the Netherlands. [11-Aug-2000]
Camber International, the Leicester-based textile machinery manufacturer, has been bought out of administration by Falmac of Singapore, safeguarding 39 jobs. [11-Aug-2000]
Lyle & Scott, the Borders-based knitwear company with 290 employees, has been put up for sale by parent group Sara Lee. [11-Aug-2000]
David Brown is to shed 112 jobs at its plant in Huddersfield, having reached the end of a contract to supply transmission systems for the Challenger 2 tank. [11-Aug-2000]
Carpets of Worth is to shed a further 120 jobs at its carpet factories, including 57 at Stourport and 66 at Kidderminster. [11-Aug-2000]
Raytheon of the US has won a £100m contract from the Ministry of Defence to supply identification equipment for ships and aircraft, which will secure 200 jobs at its site in Harlow. [10-Aug-2000]
Rolls-Royce is forming a £44m joint venture with Chromalloy Gas Turbine that will create 340 jobs at a new turbine components facility in Annesley, although most of the jobs will be staff relocating from factories at Somercotes and Eastwood. [10-Aug-2000]
Dawson Fur Fabrics is to close its Wakefield Road factory in Huddersfield later this year, with the loss of 65 jobs. [10-Aug-2000]
Data Marine Systems, the Aberdeen-based supplier of satellite technology to offshore oil and gas platforms, is being acquired by Schlumberger for undisclosed terms. [10-Aug-2000]
IMI has acquired Robimatic, the supplier of plumbing products, for up to £19m. [09-Aug-2000]
Jourdan is increasing its stake in Brooke Industrial, the distributor of engineering components, to 30%, in a share offer that will see Brooke raise up to £1.2m for working capital. [09-Aug-2000]
Fireplace Workshop is to close two fireplace factories in Derby with the loss of 60 jobs, but may continue to operate from another site at the Wyvern Centre. [09-Aug-2000]
Hicking is to close its textile factory in Nottingham's Queen's Road in order to transfer the work and 152 staff to other sites in Carlton and Leek. [09-Aug-2000]
Driffield Clothing has closed its textile factory in Driffield with the loss of 150 jobs. [09-Aug-2000]
North Yorkshire County Council is planning to set up a new landfill waste management site at Tancred, adjacent to the existing Yorwaste operation in Scorton. [09-Aug-2000]
Laird has acquired Instrument Specialities Company, the US manufacturer of electromagnetic interference shields, for £172m, and is now looking to sell off its automotive businesses. [08-Aug-2000]
Syltone is to restructure its Bradford-based transport engineering business with the loss of 200 jobs, which will involve the sale of Metal Spraying and Bradley Doublelock and the closure of EW Fuel Management. [08-Aug-2000]
Sita has acquired City Waste, the Birmingham-based commercial waste-disposal company, for undisclosed terms. [08-Aug-2000]
Waterford Wedgwood is planning to acquire Hutschenreuther, the German porcelain and giftware brand, and will transfer production to its existing Rosenthal factories. [08-Aug-2000]
Derby Plastics, the Ripley-based plastic products factory, has been acquired by Machall Investments for £1m, and the business will be expanded to create 30 new jobs over the next year. [08-Aug-2000]
Lincat is expanding its cooking equipment factory in Lincoln with the creation of 18 new jobs. [08-Aug-2000]
GKN has acquired Nissan Motor's driveline factory in Japan for £56m, giving it a 15% share of the Japanese market. [07-Aug-2000]
The Ministry of Defence is in preliminary discussions with Babcock International about the possibility of outsourcing the support and maintenance work at the Faslane Trident nuclear submarine base on the Clyde. [07-Aug-2000]
McKechnie, the aerospace and engineering company, is to undergo a £434m management buy-out with the support of the Cinven venture capital group. [07-Aug-2000]
Wedeco UV Systems, the Sudbury-based water disinfection company, is planning to set up a new factory and headquarters at the Chilton Industrial Estate. [07-Aug-2000]
Arena-Walsall is seeking permission to expand its West Bromwich fabrications factory with the creation of 245 jobs. [07-Aug-2000]
ABB Alstom Power is to cut 400 jobs in Lincoln as part of a restructuring programme. [04-Aug-2000]
Electra Partners Europe, the private equity firm, has acquired a 44% stake in Safety-Kleen Europe, the parts cleaning business, for £24m. [03-Aug-2000]
First Technology is to acquire Capteur Sensors and Analysers, the manufacturer of gas sensors, for £9.4m. [03-Aug-2000]
Dunlop Oil & Marine, the Grimsby-based manufacturer of hoses and pipelines, has been acquired by Phoenix AG of Germany for undisclosed terms. [03-Aug-2000]
Royal Doulton is planning to relocate its headquarters and 280 staff from Minton House in Stoke to a new office complex and factory shop at Etruria Valley. [03-Aug-2000]
Locate in Scotland has announced that up to 50 jobs are being created in Fife at a recently-launched engineering company called Stone Manganese Marine Services. [03-Aug-2000]
Limelight, the kitchens and bathrooms supplier, is planning a £57m management buy-out. [01-Aug-2000]
Waste Recycling is looking to spend more than £200m on acquisitions, and is particularly interested in the processing of industrial and domestic waste. [01-Aug-2000]
Silvertech is planning to create 14 new jobs at its control and safety systems business in Aberdeen, and will relocate its accounts staff from Horsham and increase its office space at the Aberdeen Science and Technology Park. [01-Aug-2000]
Cintel International, the Ware-based manufacturer of machines to transfer film to video, has gone into voluntary liquidation with the loss of 60 jobs. [01-Aug-2000]
Babcock International is looking to sell its materials handling division, which is worth about £70m, in order to focus on the supply of engineering and support services to the UK defence sector. [31-Jul-2000]
East Sussex County Council has identified six potential sites in East Sussex and Brighton for new waste disposal and recycling facilities. [28-Jul-2000]
Billiton has acquired a 2.1% indirect stake in Companhia Vale do Rio Doce in a complex £215m deal, in order to gain access to the Brazilian iron ore industry. [27-Jul-2000]
Ash & Lacy, the metals engineer, is said to be considering two takeover approaches from Hill & Smith and Metnor. [27-Jul-2000]
Glynwed has acquired Mono, the Swansea-based bakery equipment manufacturer, in a deal thought to be worth more than £11m. [27-Jul-2000]
Duckers is considering plans to close its Rotherham-based furniture factory in October with the loss of 130 jobs. [27-Jul-2000]
Kelda has dropped plans to sell Yorkshire Water's assets to a mutual company owned by customers, and will now seek an alternative way of restructuring. [26-Jul-2000]
The Ministry of Defence is seeking new bids for the £1.7bn Bowman army radio programme, having rejected the current bid from the Archer Communications consortium. [26-Jul-2000]
Roxspur, the control systems company, has received a £28m takeover approach from its management. [25-Jul-2000]
H Roberts & Son, the Leicester-based supplier of precision measuring equipment, has undergone a management buy-out for undisclosed terms. [25-Jul-2000]
Corus has announced plans to shed a further 1,300 jobs, including 450 at Llanwern and 400 at Port Talbot, leaving a total Welsh workforce of 10,000. [24-Jul-2000]
Standard Engineering, the Leicester-based shoe machinery specialist, has acquired rival Whitfield Wylie for undisclosed terms. [24-Jul-2000]
Eurocopy has acquired Apex Business Products, the Warrington-based photocopier and fax supplier, for £0.6m. [24-Jul-2000]
Courtaulds Textiles is to shed a further 650 jobs by closing its main knitwear site in Worksop and a fashion business in Heanor. [21-Jul-2000]
Wilshaw is to sell its steel powders business to Hoganas for £8m, and the proceeds are expected to be used for acquisitions. [21-Jul-2000]
Industrial Control Services, the manufacturer of safety and control systems, is to be acquired by venture capitalist Alchemy for a nominal fee, in order to avoid insolvency. [21-Jul-2000]
J&J Dyson has acquired Acme Marls, the kiln equipment company, for £1.9m, and plans to consolidate its business onto the Acme Marls site in Tunstall by the end of next year with an unspecified number of redundancies. [21-Jul-2000]
Umeco has acquired Richmond Aircraft Products of the US from MA Hanna for £24m. [20-Jul-2000]
Firth Rixson is to shed 40 jobs at its Scunthorpe foundry following a fall in exports. [19-Jul-2000]
Deritend Electrical Services is to close its industrial equipment repair factory in Birmingham with the loss of about 50 jobs, and work will be transferred to sister plants in Wolverhampton, Walsall and Stoke. [19-Jul-2000]
Maldon District Council has approved plans from Essex & Suffolk Water for the development of a water recycling plant at Langford. [18-Jul-2000]
Corus has announced plans to cut about 1,200 jobs at its large production sites in Scunthorpe and Redcar, as part of an ongoing drive to reduce costs. [17-Jul-2000]
The University of Aberdeen is to submit plans to build a new £8.9m environmental research centre on a site in Old Aberdeen. [17-Jul-2000]
Pland Stainless, the Leeds-based manufacturer of steel fittings, has undergone a management buy-out, securing 37 jobs. [17-Jul-2000]
BAe Systems has reached agreement to acquire Lockheed Martin's aerospace electronics business for £1.1bn, and the deal is expected to be completed later this year. [14-Jul-2000]
BAe Systems Airbus UK is looking to recruit up to 300 engineers in Derby, Bristol, Portsmouth and other engineering centres, in order to manufacture wings for the new Airbus superjumbo. [14-Jul-2000]
Anglian Water is setting up a new company called H2go, in order to offer water, waste and recycling services to large companies outside its operating region. [13-Jul-2000]
Richard Roberts, the knitwear manufacturer, is to close a site in Hinckley with the loss of 200 jobs, and a further 90 jobs will be lost at its Leicester factory. [13-Jul-2000]
Daler-Rowney is to close its paintbrush factory in Dartmouth with the loss of 40 jobs, in order to concentrate production at its plant in the Dominican Republic. [13-Jul-2000]
Jackstone Food Systems is planning to close its industrial freezing equipment in Thetford later this year with the loss of 40 jobs, but its Dartford site will remain open. [13-Jul-2000]
Linn Products is to expand its home entertainment systems factory in Glasgow, with the creation of 50 jobs. [13-Jul-2000]
Collis Engineering is looking to recruit 30 fabricators and welders at its railway engineering factory in Alfreston, and expects to double in size over the next three years to 200 employees. [12-Jul-2000]
ABB Control Valves is shedding 30 of the 206 jobs at its engineering factory in Brighouse, in order to make the business more competitive. [12-Jul-2000]
Medisys is planning to start production of its Futura safety syringe this year, having won approval from the US Food and Drug Administration. [11-Jul-2000]
Wade Furniture Group has sold its consumer division to JDP Furniture for undisclosed terms, which will involve the transfer of 850 staff. [11-Jul-2000]
Waste Recycling Group is to open a new £2m recycling centre in Haverhill later this month. [11-Jul-2000]
ASW is selling its 86% stake in SAM, its French wire rods subsidiary, for £82m, in order to focus on its UK plants in Cardiff and Sheerness. [10-Jul-2000]
Courtaulds Textiles has sold Christy, the Cheshire-based towels business, to management for £15m. [10-Jul-2000]
South West Water has won the go-ahead to build a £22m sewage treatment works at Kieve Mill near Camborne. [10-Jul-2000]
AEA Technology is to build a new 32,000 sq ft office and training facility at the Harwell International Business Centre, in order to expand its engineering software business. [10-Jul-2000]
BAe Systems is forming a joint venture with Xchanging to take on the aerospace group's back office and administration functions, which will involve the transfer of the 1,300-strong human resources department. [07-Jul-2000]
Anglian Water has paid £87m for a controlling stake in Esval, the Chilean water company, and will use it as a platform to launch other Latin American businesses. [07-Jul-2000]
John Crowther & Son, the Huddersfield textile mill, is to be acquired by Oakes-based worsted dyer and finisher John Gladstones, saving most of the 100 jobs. [07-Jul-2000]
Wellcome Trust and the government have announced plans to spend a combined £1bn upgrading university research laboratories over the next two years. [06-Jul-2000]
CK Tools has opened a new hand tools factory in Pwllheli, North Wales, bringing 11 separate sites under one roof and securing the future of 110 jobs. [06-Jul-2000]
British American Tobacco has sold its Spennymoor plant in County Durham to Industrial Estates Scotland, and the 27-acre site will be converted into a trading park for new businesses. [05-Jul-2000]
NXT has raised £28m in a share placing in order to fund the development of new technologies, such as speech synthesis. [05-Jul-2000]
Yorkshire Water has appointed Gleeson to build its western area wastewater schemes, in a £75m five-year programme. [05-Jul-2000]
Duracell is to increase production at its batteries factory in Wrexham, and its workforce will double to 110. [05-Jul-2000]
Longbore, the US horizontal drilling specialist, is investing £3m in a new facility in Livingston with the creation of 30 jobs. [05-Jul-2000]
Balfour Beatty is planning to acquire Integral Technologies, the US developer of security and surveillance technology, for up to £33m, in order to increase the capabilities of its Andover Controls business. [04-Jul-2000]
Photonic Materials has secured £2.5m of equity finance in order to increase production capacity of crystals for use in communication components, mobile phones, and solid-state lasers. [04-Jul-2000]
Charterhouse Group, the corporate clothing manufacturer, is to relocate its warehousing and headquarters from Mountsorrel and Hathern in Leicestershire to Castle Donington in August. [04-Jul-2000]
High Style Furnishings, the manufacturer of curtains and cushions, has closed its production and warehousing operation in Cambridgeshire with the loss of 60 jobs, in order to transfer the work to Wigan. [04-Jul-2000]
Babcock Engineering is cutting 390 of the 2,750 jobs at its Rosyth naval dockyard in Fife, in order to improve competitiveness. [03-Jul-2000]
Tomkins is considering plans to sell or float Smith & Wesson, its US guns business. [03-Jul-2000]
J&J Dyson is acquiring Acme Marls of Stoke-on-Trent for £1.9m, in order to become one of the world's leading manufacturers of kiln equipment. [03-Jul-2000]
Globe Elevator Works is shedding up to 80 jobs at its lifts factory in Stockton, having decided to manufacture for niche markets only. [03-Jul-2000]
The Welsh Development Agency has announced that Carneagle Furniture of Ireland is to set a £2.7m pine furniture factory in Caernarfon, with the creation of 60 jobs. [30-Jun-2000]
IFX Power, the supplier of power supply components, is planning to raise £27m in a flotation, and some of the proceeds will be used to buy the US power solutions company IPS. [29-Jun-2000]
North East Lincolnshire Council is to consider plans for the development of a £20m waste treatment plant in Stallingborough, which would create 20 jobs. [29-Jun-2000]
Clyde Marine, the Glasgow-based manufacturer of boating equipment, is to sell its Simpson Lawrence UK distribution business to Dorset-based Sowester for £4m, which will involve the transfer of 90 employees. [29-Jun-2000]
Shinei Sangyo, the Singapore-based manufacturer of precision tools, is to set up a European headquarters in Livingston, with the creation of 80 jobs. [29-Jun-2000]
Kyushu Matsushita Electric is to close its consumer electronics factory in Treforest next March, in order to transfer production and up to 130 workers to Newport. [28-Jun-2000]
Munster Simms Engineering is investing £1.6m at Bangor, Northern Ireland, to produce plumbing systems for boats and caravans, with the creation of 25 jobs over the next three years. [28-Jun-2000]
Oxford Instruments is looking to recruit 80 new staff at its superconductivity subsidiary near Abingdon, including 40 specialist engineers and 40 manufacturing technicians. [27-Jun-2000]
Stead McAlpin is to invest £6.2m in new machinery at its textile printing mill in Cummersdale near Carlisle, while the warehouse will be moved from Cummersdale to Kingmoor Park. [27-Jun-2000]
Baldor, the US electric motor specialist, is setting up a new European headquarters in Bristol with the creation of 25 jobs. [27-Jun-2000]
Cintel International is shedding 80 jobs at its factory in Ware, which manufactures machines to transfer film to video. [27-Jun-2000]
Lumination, the light fittings manufacturer, is being acquired by Steeple for £28m. [26-Jun-2000]
Optical Coating Laboratory is planning a £2m expansion at its Dalgety Bay opto-electronics plant in Fife, with the creation of up to 200 jobs. [26-Jun-2000]
Platignum, the Royston-based pen manufacturer, has been acquired by Universal Writing Instruments of Italy for undisclosed terms. [26-Jun-2000]
The National Assembly for Wales is to help fund a new factory being set up in Bangor by Cycle Citi of Taiwan, which will produce up to 350,000 units a year and create 160 jobs. [23-Jun-2000]
H&R Johnson is shedding 95 jobs at its tile business in Stoke-on-Trent, while nearby Staffordshire Tableware has announced 50 redundancies. [23-Jun-2000]
Baxi is to close one of its four heating factories in Lancashire, and a decision on which is to go will be made in two months. [23-Jun-2000]
Ionic Surface Treatments is to close its electroplating factory in Dudley with the loss of up to 50 jobs, but some staff will transfer to another site in Smethwick. [23-Jun-2000]
CTC Marine Projects is relocating its undersea cable installation and maintenance business from Middlesbrough to Darlington, where it expects to create up to 200 jobs. [23-Jun-2000]
Crown Eyeglass, the Aim-listed spectacles company, is to undergo a £1.4m management buy-out. [23-Jun-2000]
Hornsea Pottery is to close with the loss of 230 jobs, having failed to find a buyer. [22-Jun-2000]
Trifast, the industrial fastenings company, is planning to set up a £0.25m warehouse and office complex somewhere in the Midlands. [21-Jun-2000]
Elmwood Sensors is planning to cut about 100 of the 350 jobs at its electrical components factory in North Shields due to a fall in orders. [21-Jun-2000]
Rentokil Initial is acquiring Bilger Schwenk, the German textile service company, for £40m, and has also announced six smaller acquisitions in Belgium, Australia, Hong Kong and the US. [20-Jun-2000]
Impact Fork Lifts, the Immingham-based Toyota forklift dealer, has been bought by Saficon Industrial Equipment of South Africa, and a £16m expansion programme will result in more depots being opened across the country. [20-Jun-2000]
Smoby Toys of France has opened a new UK distribution and marketing headquarters in Chepstow, and is now examining the option of making the site a manufacturing operation. [20-Jun-2000]
Corus is to shed 1,200 jobs at its engineering steel sites in Rotherham, Sheffield and elsewhere, while a further 230 jobs will be lost when it consolidates its R&D staff from Rotherham, Teesside and Port Talbot onto one site. [19-Jun-2000]
EES Precision Engineering, the Port Talbot-based tool manufacturer, has gone into liquidation with the loss of 60 jobs. [19-Jun-2000]
BAe Systems is to shed up to 3,800 jobs at sites in Brough, Preston, Cumbria, Govan, Scotstoun, York, Blackburn and Edinburgh, in order to eliminate duplication of functions following its purchase of Marconi's defence business. [15-Jun-2000]
Kelda is planning to sell Yorkshire Water's physical assets to a customer-owned mutual company for about £2.4bn, in order to help it finance a large investment programme. [15-Jun-2000]
Berisford has acquired Merrychef, the manufacturer of commercial microwave ovens, for £17m. [15-Jun-2000]
APW is creating a further 80 jobs its factory in Dundee, which produces sheet metal and mechanical and electronic assemblies. [15-Jun-2000]
WF Electrical, the electrical products distributor, is to be acquired by Hagemeyer of the Netherlands for £85m. [14-Jun-2000]
Roxboro, the electronic engineering company, is in discussions with a potential venture capital backer about plans to leave the stock market and go private. [14-Jun-2000]
Frederick Moffat is to close its textiles factory in Blaenau Ffestiniog with the loss of 37 jobs, with some of the work being transferred to other sites in the Faithful group. [14-Jun-2000]
Corus is to close its steel operation in Brierley Hill and relocate the 38 jobs to Wednesfield, while 28 jobs will be axed at its distribution centre in Blackburn. [14-Jun-2000]
Sermatech Manufacturing is to close its engineering works in Colne with the loss of 60 jobs, in order to merge its businesses onto one site near Burnley. [14-Jun-2000]
Rentokil Initial is selling its international container business to Yardbrace for £75m and its US personnel services business to an equity investor for £43m. [13-Jun-2000]
Blackburn Starling, the Nottingham-based manufacturer of motor control units, is creating 50 new jobs following a £1.5m investment programme to increase capacity. [13-Jun-2000]
Plumbs is shedding 45 jobs at its furniture coverings factory in Preston, due to a shortfall in sales. [13-Jun-2000]
Thermos is to close its vacuum flask factory in Thetford, Norfolk, with the loss of 330 jobs, in order to transfer production to China. [12-Jun-2000]
Duke Street Capital has bought a £15m majority stake in Wastepack, the waste management company, and the proceeds will be used to invest in new recycling plants. [12-Jun-2000]
Freedom Group has acquired VIP Bin Cleaning, the international franchise company offering wheely bin cleaning from 80 depots, for undisclosed terms. [12-Jun-2000]
Group 4 is looking to recruit about 300 people for the new Rye Hill prison on the outskirts of Rugby, including prison officers and teaching, healthcare and catering staff. [09-Jun-2000]
Deeside Furniture is planning to set up a furniture factory at the former Laura Ashley site on Gresford Industrial Estate in Wrexham, with the creation of an initial 25 jobs. [09-Jun-2000]
K Shoes is to shed 46 of the 81 jobs at its factory in Millom, West Cumbria, in order to transfer production to eastern Europe. [09-Jun-2000]
Bristol Water is looking to sell its Millbrook depot near Shepton Mallet, as part of a restructuring programme that has combined its depots onto a single site at Cheddar. [08-Jun-2000]
Royal Doulton is to sell its Royal Crown Derby subsidiary to a management buy-out team for £16m, securing 250 jobs. [08-Jun-2000]
Southern Water has awarded a £6.5m contract to Paterson Candy to upgrade its Hardham water supply works in Sussex. [07-Jun-2000]
Barlow has won a £76m contract to own and manage the Ministry of Defence's 2,500 fork-lift trucks. [07-Jun-2000]
Volex, the cables company, is looking to expand into eastern Europe, India and China, either through acquisitions or by building new plants. [07-Jun-2000]
AC Gill is to relocate its Nottingham textiles business and 45 jobs from the Lace Market to a new unidentified site. [07-Jun-2000]
Berwin & Berwin is to close its clothing factory in Leeds later this year with the loss of 160 jobs, and job losses are also expected at its Pontefract site. [07-Jun-2000]
Cambridgeshire County Council has approved plans from Donarbon for the development of a waste processing plant outside Waterbeach, capable of dealing with 120,000 tonnes of waste per year. [07-Jun-2000]
Umeco is seeking acquisitions in Europe and the US, in order to develop a global aerospace and defence distribution business. [06-Jun-2000]
Severn Trent is to acquire UK Waste for £380m, and will combine it with Biffa to create the country's largest waste management group. [06-Jun-2000]
Dyer Structural Steelwork of Oxford is considering plans to set up a new steelworks operation in Wolverhampton, where it would create about 200 jobs. [06-Jun-2000]
BBA is planning to acquire Lynton Aviation of the US for £37m and Osprey Aviation of Southampton for £2.5m, as part of a strategy to develop a global airline maintenance business. [05-Jun-2000]
Dawson International is to close its Laidlaw & Fairgrieve wool yarn spinning business this month, with the loss of 290 jobs in Dalkeith and Selkirk. [05-Jun-2000]
Spring Ram has shed 42 jobs at its Pland Stainless factory in Leeds, in order to transfer production of kitchen sinks to Malta. [05-Jun-2000]
Ring, the Leeds-based lighting distributor, has been acquired by Group Catalina International of the US for £22m, and is also looking to expand into continental Europe. [05-Jun-2000]
DML is to relocate its Bath office to Durley Park in Keynsham next month with the transfer of more than 100 jobs, in order to manage the Submarine Support Management Group contract for the Ministry of Defence. [02-Jun-2000]
William Baker, the Leicester-based children's clothing company, is to close by the end of the year with the loss of 180 jobs. [02-Jun-2000]
Bombardier is planning a £100m expansion at its Short Brothers aircraft manufacturing business in Northern Ireland over the next three years, with the creation of about 1,200 jobs. [01-Jun-2000]
Shanks is planning to introduce new waste recycling technologies to the UK following its recent acquisition of Waste Management Nederland, including the production of fuel pellets and the creation of combustible gases. [01-Jun-2000]
Emess is selling its three international lighting operations to SLI of the US for £81m, in order to reduce borrowings and focus on its UK business. [31-May-2000]
GoIndustry.com has secured £24m of private funding in order to develop its internet market for surplus plant and equipment. [31-May-2000]
Pifco has acquired DH Haden, the Staffordshire-based electrical appliances company, for £3.2m. [30-May-2000]
Conroy Diamonds & Gold is raising £1m in a share placing in order to fund its gold exploration programme around the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic. [30-May-2000]
Pennon is to conduct a strategic review, which could lead to the separation of its water supply services from its pipeline and water treatment operations. [26-May-2000]
Flow Industries has acquired Shipham, the Hull-based manufacturer of valves for the oil industry, for undisclosed terms. [26-May-2000]
Daks Simpson is to close its textiles factory in Polbeth, West Lothian, with the loss of 261 jobs, while a further 367 will go at its headquarters in Larkhall, Lanarkshire. [26-May-2000]
MJS Contact Lenses is to create more than 100 jobs at its contact lens production units in Fareham and Hamble, due to a rise in demand. [26-May-2000]
Wrexham Council has proposed a deal with waste management firm HLC to build a £20m waste disposal plant, which would create 70 jobs. [26-May-2000]
Lochcarron of Scotland, the Galashiels-based producer of tartan textiles, is expanding its output due to a rise in export demand, and up to 18 new jobs are being created. [26-May-2000]
The government is to require local authorities to recycle or burn more waste in order to comply with an EU directive to limit landfill sites, which could lead to the construction of many new incinerators throughout the country. [25-May-2000]
Bristol Water has won a £65m contract to provide leakage consultancy services to the Malaysian state of Selangor. [25-May-2000]
British Alcan is to close its Kinlochleven Smelter in June with the loss of 51 jobs, although some employees are being relocated to its sister plant at Fort William. [25-May-2000]
Cramlington Textiles is closing its Northumberland textiles factory with the loss of 160 jobs. [25-May-2000]
South Staffordshire Group is planning to offer home services, such as plumbing, motor insurance and home insurance, as part of a strategy to shift its focus away from the regulated water industry. [24-May-2000]
Berisford is to change its name to Enodis, as part of a strategy to transform itself from a conglomerate into a catering equipment group. [23-May-2000]
Corus is to shed 168 jobs at its steel products plant in Workington, blaming the strength of sterling. [22-May-2000]
Ayrshire Metal Products has shed 24 jobs at its chassis factory, due to the effect of the closure of Volvo's truck plant in Irvine last year. [22-May-2000]
J&J Dyson has bought the kiln furniture business of Hewitt Refractories for £1.4m, and plans to consolidate operations on its existing Diamond Gimson site in Stoke-on-Trent. [22-May-2000]
Turton Brothers is to merge with Tyzack to create a combined Sheffield-based manufacturer of machine knives with 170 employees, and the three sites will be consolidated on to two later this year. [19-May-2000]
Cleveland Test Equipment Company is to recruit about 12 new staff following the relocation of its cable testing business to Preston Farm Business Park in Stockton. [19-May-2000]
Smiths Industries is to close its Quartz air conditioning factories at Ferndown and Wimborne, Dorset, in order to transfer the work to Roof Units Engineering in Dudley, where up to 95 jobs will be created. [19-May-2000]
Carpets of Worth is to close its carpet factory in Stourport with the loss of 50 jobs, in order to consolidate its operations onto one site in Kidderminster. [19-May-2000]
Senior has announced a restructuring programme that will result in the sale of its specialised industrial division, a reduction in the number of business units from 34 to 16, and the halving of head office staff. [18-May-2000]
The Ministry of Defence is to downgrade RAF Buchan in Aberdeenshire with the loss of almost 350 jobs, in order to move the air surveillance operation to RAF Neatishead in Norfolk. [18-May-2000]
IAE, the manufacturer of farming materials and gates, has submitted plans for an office, storage and industrial facility at Longton, Stoke-on-Trent, in order to bring all its 360 staff into one site. [18-May-2000]
JCB is investing £10m at its new factory in Cheadle to produce heavy dump trucks for the construction industry. [17-May-2000]
Southern Water is planning to invest £125m over the next five years, in order to expand its water grid to cope with the expected growth in new housing in the south-east. [17-May-2000]
The government has announced a £5bn package of defence orders, including a contract for the supply of Meteor missiles that will create or safeguard 1,200 jobs in Bristol, Stevenage and Stanmore. [17-May-2000]
William Baird, the clothing manufacturer, is considering plans to go private and is said to have held discussions with a number of venture capital funds. [17-May-2000]
Valeport, the Devon-based manufacturer of marine instrumentation, is planning to relocate from Dartmouth to Totnes, with the creation of 30 jobs. [17-May-2000]
United Engineering Forgings is selling its Lincoln-based aerospace division to Precision Castparts Corporation of the US for £22m, in order to focus on its automotive and cylinders operations. [16-May-2000]
Allied Textile Companies, the Leeds-based fibre manufacturer, is to undergo a £99m management buy-out. [15-May-2000]
Courtaulds Textiles is planning to close factories in Bolsover, Derbyshire, and Wishaw, Warwickshire, with the loss of 495 jobs, and a further 111 jobs will be lost at a lingerie factory in Middlesbrough. [15-May-2000]
Caradon has acquired Eltek Fire & Safety of Norway for £22m, in order to expand its security and building controls business. [15-May-2000]
TI is linking up with US software company Ariba to develop its own e-commerce procurement system, and expects to make initial savings of 5-7% on non-manufacturing purchases. [12-May-2000]
Alcan Smelting & Power has completed a £115m investment programme to expand aluminium capacity at its plant near Ashington, and is taking on 85 new workers. [12-May-2000]
Lifeguard Equipment is planning to close its Ruabon life-saving equipment factory in North Wales with the loss of up to 90 jobs, and production will move to Ruthin. [12-May-2000]
Kingston Somerset is considering plans to close its dairy equipment warehouse in Reading, and some workers could be relocated to a Shropshire site of its new parent company Fabdec. [12-May-2000]
Fenner is looking to spend up to £100m on acquisitions to expand its conveyor belt business. [11-May-2000]
Galliford has won a £30m contract to build 3,000 radio base stations across the country for British Telecom, as part of a scheme to provide communications for the police. [11-May-2000]
Toshiba is planning to invest £0.5m at its Plymouth factory in order to step up production of wide-screen TVs, despite speculation that its Japanese parent has considered closing the site due to the strong pound. [11-May-2000]
Coats Viyella is to cut 206 of the 377 jobs at its Jaeger Clothing factory in Kilmarnock. [11-May-2000]
McKechnie, the aerospace and engineering company, has received a £450m takeover approach from private equity firm Cinven. [10-May-2000]
Weir has sold its Bristol-based Strachan & Henshaw bulk handling division to Svedala Industries of Sweden for £2.5m. [10-May-2000]
Kernan Timber Products is to create up to 15 new jobs, following a £3m investment at its Gilford-based timber windows business in Northern Ireland. [10-May-2000]
Romac Gloucester Rewind, the Gloucester-based electric motors and transformers company, has been acquired by the Nottingham-based Ford Group for undisclosed terms. [09-May-2000]
Croma Optical Equipment, the developer of spy technology for the police and military, is planning to raise £1m in a flotation on Ofex. [08-May-2000]
Kelda has won a contract worth £80m to provide new waste water treatment plants for the North of Scotland Water Authority, as part of a consortium with BICC and Earth Tech Engineering. [05-May-2000]
The Ministry of Defence is to ask Alvis, Vickers and foreign manufacturers to compete for a £1.5bn contract to supply the army with 1,000 personnel carriers. [05-May-2000]
Cookson is selling its two telecoms businesses for £98m, with Neptco going to a venture capital consortium and Focas to Alcoa Fujikura. [05-May-2000]
Rossendale Group, the lifting gear manufacturer, is planning to expand into new premises in Lincoln with the creation of about 12 jobs. [05-May-2000]
Stag Holdings is to relocate its furniture factory from Nottingham to Scunthorpe, and many of the 300 staff will be offered the chance to move. [05-May-2000]
FMC is to reduce the workforce at its agricultural machinery factory in Fakenham from 80 to 25, in order to contract out the manufacturing side of the business. [05-May-2000]
Fairey is acquiring Spectris AG Sensoren und Systeme, the German controls company, for £125m, partly funded by a £55m rights issue. [04-May-2000]
Bradgate Textiles is to shed up to 70 of the 144 jobs at its household textiles factory in Sileby, Leicestershire, following a strategic decision to outsource some of the production. [04-May-2000]
Royal Brierley Crystal is in negotiations to sell the business due to cashflow problems, casting doubt over the future of more than 200 jobs. [04-May-2000]
Group 4 is being acquired by Falck of Denmark for £550m, in order to create one of the world's leading security groups. [04-May-2000]
Williams is planning to reduce the size of its Derby headquarters following the sale of its Yale locks business, and some staff will be relocated to offices in Sunbury and Slough. [02-May-2000]
GKN Westland Aerospace is to close its Avonmouth factory with the loss of hundreds of jobs, and work will be transferred to sites in the Isle of Wight and Alabama. [02-May-2000]
BAe Systems is to acquire the US-based control systems business of Lockheed Martin for £320m, and is also interested in a number of electronics operations being auctioned by Lockheed. [28-Apr-2000]
Ogihara, the Japanese tooling maker, is to set up a £10m engineering centre in Telford, with the creation of 100 jobs. [28-Apr-2000]
Art Forma is creating 25 jobs at its new £1m furniture showroom and factory in Castle Donington. [28-Apr-2000]
JH Weatherby is to close its pottery in Stoke-on-Trent, with the loss of 50 jobs since the start of the year. [28-Apr-2000]
Techserv Engineering Services is expanding its profile machine cutting business, following the recent relocation of its administration centre from Leeds to join its mill premises in Dewsbury. [28-Apr-2000]
Rotolok is to invest £2m in new workshops and offices in Tiverton, and expects to employ 50 staff at the site. [28-Apr-2000]
Charter has accepted a £471m takeover bid from Lincoln Electric, the US welding manufacturer. [27-Apr-2000]
Hunting is looking to sell its defence business following the government decision not to renew its management contract for the Aldermaston atomic weapons site. [27-Apr-2000]
Premier Aspects is creating 50 jobs at its new cable harnessing site at Pontardawe in the Swansea Valley. [27-Apr-2000]
Invensys has sold Westinghouse Brakes, the rail industry supplier, to Germany's Knorr-Bremse for £65m. [27-Apr-2000]
Williams has acquired the remaining 50% of Chubb China from joint venture partner Jardine Matheson for £44m. [26-Apr-2000]
Cooperheat, the Southport-based thermal engineering company, has set up a new facility in Darlington, in order to get closer to the petrochemical, shipbuilding and offshore industries of the north east. [26-Apr-2000]
Alstom has bought Norweb Contracting from United Utilities for £25m, as part of a strategy to develop a one-stop shop for electrical services. [25-Apr-2000]
Orbit Precision Machining is to create 25 new jobs following an investment in new machinery at its machining services site in Wantage. [25-Apr-2000]
WR Group, the Leicester-based refrigeration company, has bought NRC's supermarket services and maintenance business in Wellingborough from Stratagem Group, for undisclosed terms. [25-Apr-2000]
Imperial Tobacco is to reorganise its distribution facilities and close its customer service centre in East Kilbride with the loss of 49 jobs. [25-Apr-2000]
Bancroft MFG is to shed up to 100 jobs at its children's clothing factory in Nottingham. [25-Apr-2000]
Quasar Microwave Technology is planning to expand its microwave components factory in Teignbridge, as part of an ongoing expansion that has created 30 new jobs in recent months. [20-Apr-2000]
Marlow Ropes has acquired Whitely Products, the Daventry-based cord manufacturer, and will transfer production to Mossley near Manchester with the loss of 34 jobs. [20-Apr-2000]
Hyder, the water and electricity supplier, has agreed to a £402m takeover offer from Nomura International, and Nomura has pledged to keep the group headquarters in Cardiff. [19-Apr-2000]
Gai-Tronics, the manufacturer of telephones and public address systems, is setting up a new factory at Stretton Park in Burton, and expects to create 50 jobs over the next five years. [19-Apr-2000]
Babcock International has established a new facilities management company called Babcock FM, which will operate out of its Rosyth base with the aim of identifying and then implementing cost-cutting strategies for clients. [19-Apr-2000]
Corus is planning to take a 30% stake in a joint venture with Wupperman Industrie to build a steel galvanizing plant at Moerdijk in the Netherlands. [19-Apr-2000]
Samsung is planning a £2m expansion at its computer monitor and microwave factory near Billingham with the creation of 300 jobs, while its nearby printed circuit boards factory will be converted into a distribution hub for monitors. [18-Apr-2000]
William Hare is to relocate the headquarters of its steel manufacturing business from Bolton to Brandlesholme House in Bury, with the transfer of 180 jobs. [18-Apr-2000]
AK Holdings, the utility industry supplier, is planning to relocate to a £3m site at the Baker Brook Industrial Estate near Nottingham, where it will build a new waste recycling centre and create 150 jobs over the next three years. [17-Apr-2000]
Silentnight is to invest £3m at its Sunderland furniture factory, in order to improve efficiency and safeguard the 774 jobs. [17-Apr-2000]
Mainetti Technology is seeking permission to expand its fibre optic factory in Hawick, where the workforce has more than doubled to 90 since the new plant opened last year. [17-Apr-2000]
Courtaulds Textiles is planning to close two lingerie factories in Derby and County Armagh with the loss of more than 300 jobs. [14-Apr-2000]
Pro-Veneers is to set up a specialist sheet veneering centre at the Newstead Industrial Park near Nottingham, with the creation of 18 jobs. [13-Apr-2000]
Kelda is to conduct a strategic review of its business, which could lead to the sale of its core water operations. [12-Apr-2000]
Middlesex Holdings is forming an alliance with the Lebedinsky mine in Russia to market iron ore products to the global market. [11-Apr-2000]
Carpenter Engineered Products has set up a new factory in Derby to produce ceramic cores for aero engine turbine blades, and expects to create 30 jobs over the next few years. [11-Apr-2000]
Severn Trent is planning to close the offices at its Burslem depot, which will involve the relocation or loss of up to 120 jobs. [11-Apr-2000]
Alvis is selling a division that manufacturers bomb disposal robots to Northrop Grumman of the US for £1.4m, and job losses are expected among the 31 Coventry-based workers. [11-Apr-2000]
Turbo Genset, the manufacturer of small-scale generators, is planning to raise £25m in a flotation. [10-Apr-2000]
Pattern Equipment Company, the Leicester-based tooling business, has undergone a management buy-out, and is now looking to invest in new facilities. [07-Apr-2000]
Delta is considering plans to set up a new electronics factory in Holyhead that could create 1,000 jobs, and has applied for a £20m regional assistance grant from the Welsh Assembly. [07-Apr-2000]
Morgan Crucible is selling its Laser Diode subsidiary, which makes equipment for the fibre-optic communications industry, to Tyco International for £16m. [07-Apr-2000]
Knowles Electronics is to close its hearing aids factory in Burgess Hill in July with the loss of 145 jobs, in order to transfer production to Malaysia and China. [07-Apr-2000]
Sirdar is considering plans to close its Eversure curtains and accessories business in Sheffield, unless a buyer can be found. [06-Apr-2000]
Spring Ram is selling three Scunthorpe-based kitchen divisions to Design Academy, securing the future of about 70 jobs. [06-Apr-2000]
J&J Dyson is acquiring the ceramic fibres business of Wade Ceramics for £1.5m, and will relocate the business from Stoke-on-Trent to Burton-on-Trent. [06-Apr-2000]
Vesuvius is to close its slide gates assembly and repair operation in Worksop, with the loss of 70 of the site's 260 jobs. [06-Apr-2000]
Thames Water is planning to spend £750m on infrastructure projects over the next five years, and is seeking tenders from 10 contractors. [05-Apr-2000]
Britax International is to acquire Bellingham, the US aircraft interiors business, from Hexcel for £73m. [05-Apr-2000]
Alstom is to acquire ABB's 50% stake in ABB Alstom Power, their global power generation joint venture, in a $1.2bn deal. [03-Apr-2000]
Courtaulds Textiles is planning to shed up to 73 jobs at its Rowley Casualwear factory in Ipswich, due to competition in the childrenswear market. [03-Apr-2000]
Havant Borough Council is to consider plans from A&J Bull for the development of a new industrial waste sorting station. [03-Apr-2000]
RPS Group is raising £16m in a share placing, in order to fund acquisitions and the expansion of its business support services across Europe. [31-Mar-2000]
Volex is to cut 325 jobs at its power cables business near Manchester, after moving some production abroad. [31-Mar-2000]
Yorkshire Water has announced plans to invest £450m improving water quality and updating the sewage system of Yorkshire, including a new £75m sewage treatment plant at Selby. [31-Mar-2000]
Drallim Industries, the Bexhill-based manufacturer of testing gear, has sold its factory and is seeking an alternative site for its 100 employees. [30-Mar-2000]
Daniel Europe is to shed 45 of the 120 jobs at its measuring equipment factory near Falkirk, while other workers will be relocated to other sites. [30-Mar-2000]
Hyder, the Welsh utilities group, has announced that discussions are taking place with a number of parties about a range of strategic options, which could lead to an offer for the whole company. [29-Mar-2000]
Kvaerner is planning to close its field development workshop at Wilton with the loss of 138 jobs, due to a lack of orders. [29-Mar-2000]
Hevea is to close the Dunlop's boot factory in Liverpool with the loss of 67 jobs, and production will be transferred to Portugal. [28-Mar-2000]
BAe Systems is forming an internet-based joint venture with Boeing, Lockheed Martin and Raytheon, to enable the companies to communicate with suppliers and customers. [28-Mar-2000]
Courtaulds Textiles is to be acquired by Sara Lee of the US for £150m plus debt, which will double the size of Sara Lee's European clothing business. [27-Mar-2000]
Rolls-Royce is to cut 284 jobs in its turbine systems division, which will affect plants in Derby and Bristol. [27-Mar-2000]
Appleyards Plastics is creating 172 new jobs in Middlesbrough, following a £3m investment in new plant to spray paint domestic appliances, car components and mobile phones. [27-Mar-2000]
Bentwood is planning to close its clothing factory in Middlesbrough with the loss of 250 jobs. [27-Mar-2000]
Lucas Aerospace is to shed a further 100 jobs at its Wolverhampton factory that manufactures flight controls for aircraft. [27-Mar-2000]
Fenner is selling its polymer engineering business for £2m to a new company called United Polymers, in which Grove Industries will take an 80% stake. [24-Mar-2000]
Bodycote International, the metal processing group, is planning to build about 100 new plants worldwide over the next five years, including 20 in China and Taiwan. [24-Mar-2000]
Boss Design, the chair manufacturer, is to centralise its operations at a 48,000 sq ft site in Dudley. [24-Mar-2000]
Coflexip Stena Offshore is acquiring the US pipeline engineering company RJ Brown of Houston from Kvaerner for undisclosed terms. [24-Mar-2000]
Royal Doulton is planning to invest £6.5m in its three Stoke-on-Trent factories, in order to introduce state-of-the art manufacturing technology and improve efficiency. [24-Mar-2000]
Indespension is to relocate its trailer factory to a new site at Horwich near Bolton, with the creation of an unspecified number of jobs. [24-Mar-2000]
Coats Viyella is to close its Glenaden textile factory in Northern Ireland with the loss of 382 jobs, but 140 jobs could be saved by a proposed management buy-out. [24-Mar-2000]
Welsh Development Agency has announced that A&J Enterprises of Taiwan is to set up a bicycle factory in Newtown, Powys, creating up to 125 jobs. [24-Mar-2000]
Daks Simpson is to shed up to 628 jobs at clothing factories in Larkhall, Lanarkshire, and Polbeth in East Lothian, following the loss of a contract from Marks & Spencer. [24-Mar-2000]
Weir is planning to increase its focus on core products such as pumps by making disposals and spending at least £50m on acquisitions this year. [23-Mar-2000]
MJ Technologies is to create a further 20 jobs at its factory in Coalville, having won a £6m contract to supply process equipment to the US aerospace industry. [23-Mar-2000]
Foray Control Systems is to shed 60 jobs at its circuit boards factory in Workington, in order to transfer production to Maldon in Essex. [23-Mar-2000]
Premier Stamping is planning to build a £4m factory and forge in Cradley Heath. [23-Mar-2000]
Terex is planning a £10m expansion at its construction equipment factory and offices in Motherwell. [23-Mar-2000]
Glynwed is looking to spend up to £100m on acquisitions, with the focus on pipes and catering equipment. [22-Mar-2000]
Wednesbury Tube is to invest £25m at its copper tube factory in Bilston, securing the future of about 200 workers. [21-Mar-2000]
Cochran Boilers, the Dumfriesshire-based boiler manufacturer, has been sold by Rolls-Royce to the Lincolnshire-based BIB Group. [21-Mar-2000]
Coats Viyella is to close the Coats Optilon zip factory at Cleator Moor at the end of the year with the loss of 82 jobs, and production will move to other sites in Peterlee and abroad. [20-Mar-2000]
Glen Dimplex is investing £5m at its Chilton Electric plant in Dunleer, to create the group's sole factory for the export of electric fan heaters. [20-Mar-2000]
Schmitz Cargobull is to shed 40 jobs at its refrigerated trailers factory in Harelaw, Stanley, due to a seasonal downturn in business. [20-Mar-2000]
NSD is seeking permission for a £4m expansion plan at its steel distribution business in Lincolnshire, with the creation of up to 50 jobs. [20-Mar-2000]
Haden MacLellan has sold its industrial services division for £15m, as part of a restructuring programme to focus on industrial fasteners. [20-Mar-2000]
Thames Water is forming a joint venture with Operations Management International of the US to provide water and waste water services to large North American companies. [20-Mar-2000]
Dynacast is to relocate its engineering business from Northampton to Alcester in August, with the loss of up to 120 jobs. [17-Mar-2000]
Smiths Industries is looking to spend up to £750m on acquisitions, in order to expand its aerospace, engineering and medical businesses. [16-Mar-2000]
Philips is to build a new glass furnace at its television screen factory in Simonstone, which will secure the future of the 300-strong workforce. [16-Mar-2000]
Courtaulds Textiles is to shed 500 jobs and close two more factories in Nottingham and Mansfield, in order to transfer production overseas. [15-Mar-2000]
Morgan Crucible is looking to spend up to £100m on another major acquisition, in order to help it focus on ceramic and carbon-based engineering products. [15-Mar-2000]
Greenway Holdings of Leeds is to be acquired by OSS Group, the Liverpool-based waste oils recycling group, for £7.6m. [15-Mar-2000]
Heywood Williams has acquired Pioneer Plastics, the US supplier of plastic pipe products. [14-Mar-2000]
The Ninth Floor is acquiring Farsight Surveillance Technologies and a 60% stake in its software development division IO MM Software, for £5.6m. [14-Mar-2000]
Roxboro has announced plans to reorganise its eight subsidiaries into three divisions - energy and process industries, aerospace, and key growth markets. [14-Mar-2000]
Phoenix Steel Tube and Newman Phoenix Drawn Tube are to shed 70 jobs in the West Midlands following their acquisition by Tyco, and some of the employees are expected to move to other Tyco factories in Wednesbury and Oldbury. [14-Mar-2000]
Shanks is to acquire Waste Management Nederland, the Dutch waste disposal company, for £208m. [10-Mar-2000]
Oxford Instruments is to close two sites in Abingdon which employ a total of 200 people, and relocate the operations to High Wycombe and Old Woking, Surrey. [10-Mar-2000]
UK Safety, the Bristol-based footwear and workwear company, has acquired Romford-based corporate clothing manufacturer Rex Regal. [10-Mar-2000]
Coats Viyella is to close a clothing factory in Newark with the loss of about 250 jobs, as part of a strategy to move production overseas. [09-Mar-2000]
Texon, the Leicester-based supplier of materials to the footwear industry, has acquired Crispin Dynamics, the computer-aided shoe designer, for £2.5m. [09-Mar-2000]
Leek Dyeing & Finishing Company, the Leek-based textiles company, has been granted an Administration Order that will enable it to continue trading while it seeks a buyer. [09-Mar-2000]
Bournemouth & West Hampshire Water is planning to build a £5.5m pumping station in Wimborne. [09-Mar-2000]
Williams is selling its Yale locks business to Assa Abloy of Sweden for about £900m, and has also announced plans to split itself into two separate companies - Chubb Security Services and Kidde fire protection. [08-Mar-2000]
Ultra Hydraulics is to shed more than 250 jobs at its hydraulic pump factories in Gloucester and Cheltenham, in order to transfer production to Germany. [08-Mar-2000]
Cookson is in discussions to sell its remaining plastics businesses for about £150m, in order to focus on ceramics, precious metals and electronic materials. [07-Mar-2000]
Manthorpe has acquired Huthwaite-based Acrumac Precision Engineering for undisclosed terms, in order to strengthen its expertise in the gas turbine sub-contract manufacturing industry. [07-Mar-2000]
South West Water has announced plans to spend £725m on improvements to its water and sewerage services over the next five years. [06-Mar-2000]
Rolls-Royce is to shed up to 1,000 jobs at its Derby-based aerospace and engineering activities in the next year. [03-Mar-2000]
P&B Metal Components is to relocate its electrical products business to larger premises in Sheffield, with the creation of a number of new jobs. [03-Mar-2000]
Frederick Crowther is to relocate its metal engineering business from Halifax to the Guards Road Industrial Estate in Coldstream, where it expects to create 10 new jobs. [03-Mar-2000]
Charter is to relocate its Howden Sirocco heaters and fans business to a new site on Queen's Island in Belfast. [03-Mar-2000]
First Technology is to acquire City Technology, the maker of gas-testing equipment, for £100m. [03-Mar-2000]
Whatman is looking to sell its industrial filtration and gas generation operations, in order to focus on biosciences. [02-Mar-2000]
Steel & Alloy of West Bromwich is linking up with French steel company Solac Usinor to set up a new hi-tech laser-welding works in Smethwick, with the creation of 30 jobs. [02-Mar-2000]
Renold is acquiring Jeffrey Chain, the US manufacturer of industrial chains, for £34m. [02-Mar-2000]
Ash & Lacy has acquired Imas Technology, the Birmingham-based supplier of water filtration systems, for undisclosed terms. [01-Mar-2000]
William Baird is to close its clothing factories in Sri Lanka and Europe, in order to cease manufacturing and focus on the development of a branded business. [01-Mar-2000]
ABB Alstom Power is to shed 10,000 jobs in a worldwide restructuring programme, in order to reduce overcapacity in the declining market for steam generators. [01-Mar-2000]
West of Scotland Water Authority has awarded a £55m contract to Miller Civil Engineering for the development of a new sludge treatment plant at Daldowie. [01-Mar-2000]
Cameron Holdings, the Bristol-based manufacturer of hot air balloons, has bought Sky Balloons International of Wrexham for undisclosed terms. [29-Feb-2000]
Bentwood is shedding 200 jobs at its clothing factory in Chorley, in order to re-focus the site on lingerie. [28-Feb-2000]
Meggitt Electronic Components is to close its precision engineering factory at the Holsworthy industrial estate in Devon with the loss of 25 jobs. [25-Feb-2000]
Chamberlain Doors is planning to expand its garage doors business in Bolton with the creation of at least 12 jobs. [25-Feb-2000]
Gyrus is to acquire Everest Medical Corporation, the US manufacturer of surgical equipment, for £32m, which will give it access to a 105-strong US salesforce. [24-Feb-2000]
Coats Viyella is to close its clothing factory in Barlestone, Leicestershire, with the loss of 110 jobs. [24-Feb-2000]
Severfield-Reeve has started work on a £3m expansion at its structural steel factory near Thirsk in North Yorkshire. [24-Feb-2000]
UKae, the Sutton Coldfield-based supplier of double glazing parts, has undergone a £8m management buy-out. [24-Feb-2000]
Matra BAe Dynamics has won a £378m contract to supply Seawolf missiles to the Ministry of Defence, which will secure or create up to 300 jobs at sites in Stevenage, Bristol and Bolton. [23-Feb-2000]
Smiths Industries is to acquire Actuation Systems, the US-based aircraft utilities business, from BAe Systems for £63m. [23-Feb-2000]
TRW Aeronautical Systems is to invest £10m in new machinery at its Huyton Business Park factory on Merseyside. [21-Feb-2000]
Industrial Control Services, the supplier of control and safety systems, has received a takeover approach from an unnamed company. [21-Feb-2000]
Courtaulds Textiles is to sell its Standfast and Weavestyle furnishings operations to Walker Greenbank for £9m, and is now looking to sell Zorbit nursery products and Christy towels. [21-Feb-2000]
Musto is planning to shed up to 26 jobs at its sailing equipment business in Benfleet, in response to competition from the Far East. [18-Feb-2000]
Williams Fasteners has acquired Dunning's Fasteners, the Teesside-based supplier of heavy-duty nuts and bolts, for undisclosed terms. [18-Feb-2000]
General Trailers is to shed up to 100 jobs at its trailer manufacturing business in Norfolk, following the loss of an order to supply Shell tankers. [18-Feb-2000]
John Scott & Sons is closing its textile business in Hawick with the loss of 30 jobs. [18-Feb-2000]
St Helens Glass is to shed 36 of the 400-strong workforce after making a number of efficiency improvements. [17-Feb-2000]
Morgan Crucible is to sell its power industry products business to Tyco International of the US for £44m. [17-Feb-2000]
Dyson is planning to build a vacuum cleaner factory in east Asia, and is considering sites in China and Malaysia. [16-Feb-2000]
Folkes Group is to close its Kidderminster Folkes Forge operation, with the loss of about 100 jobs. [15-Feb-2000]
Courtaulds Textiles has received a £104m takeover approach from Sara Lee, the US consumer products group. [15-Feb-2000]
Dawson International is to sell its Pringle knitwear business to Fang Brothers Knitting of Hong Kong for about £5m. [15-Feb-2000]
TI Group is planning to form an alliance with Wartsila of Finland to provide complete power systems to the shipbuilding industry. [14-Feb-2000]
Courtaulds Textiles is to close its Alfreton factory with the expected loss of 214 jobs, in order to transfer more production to Sri Lanka and Morocco. [14-Feb-2000]
Monmore Tubes, the Wolverhampton-based engineering business, is to close with the loss of up to 150 jobs. [14-Feb-2000]
John Turnbull & Sons, the Hawick-based firm of dyers and finishers serving the textile industry, has gone into liquidation with the loss of 35 jobs. [14-Feb-2000]
Malton Clothing is planning to close its factory in Norton, North Yorkshire, and aims to relocate some of the 87 employees to another site in Driffield. [11-Feb-2000]
The Ministry of Defence is to close the Defence Aviation Repair Agency avionics unit at the Fleetlands helicopter repair yard in Gosport, and aims to relocate the 75 staff to other sites. [11-Feb-2000]
Weir has announced plans to axe UK-based component suppliers and source more materials from eastern Europe, India, China and South America, due to the current high levels of sterling. [11-Feb-2000]
Baxi Partnership is planning to close a warehouse in Leamington Spa and a foundry in Warwick with the loss of 230 jobs, in order to transfer the operations to sites in Lancashire. [11-Feb-2000]
Wassall, the industrial conglomerate, has agreed to a £627m takeover bid from an investment vehicle owned by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts. [11-Feb-2000]
BICC has sold part of its energy cables business to Pirelli for about £130m, including five UK plants and six overseas. [11-Feb-2000]
Corus is cutting 60 jobs at its Dalzell plate mill in Motherwell and the Clydebridge works in Glasgow, prompting speculation that the plants could be closed. [10-Feb-2000]
Royal Brierley Crystal is to move to a site next to the Black Country Living Museum in Dudley, in a £5m redevelopment that will involve the relocation of 200 jobs and the creation of 25 new jobs. [10-Feb-2000]
Hampson Industries is expanding its Bellhouse Hartwell aircraft parts factory in Westhoughton at a cost of £1m, and 60 jobs will be created. [09-Feb-2000]
Martin International is to close its leisurewear factory in Shirebrook in May with the loss of up to 240 jobs, and production will move overseas. [09-Feb-2000]
RPS Group is acquiring Environmental Engineering Limited of Ireland for £7.3m. [09-Feb-2000]
ADT is planning to double the size of its security business in Sheffield over the next year with the creation of up to 40 jobs. [08-Feb-2000]
Unique Images is to close its Christmas cracker factory in Nelson with the loss of 50 jobs, and production will be transferred to Bradford. [08-Feb-2000]
Middlesex Holdings is forming a joint venture with Gazprom of Russia to set up an internet-based trading platform for steel. [08-Feb-2000]
Cleveland Waste Management is planning to build a new £30m incinerator at Haverton Hill on Teesside, to burn more domestic waste and increase capacity of the plant by 30%. [07-Feb-2000]
Shop-Equip is to create 90 jobs at its shop equipment factory at Whaley Thorns in Derbyshire, and is building new manufacturing and telesales premises. [07-Feb-2000]
BAe Systems has dropped plans to form a joint venture between its Royal Ordnance business and Rheinmetall of Germany, and will instead build up its own position in the European munitions sector. [07-Feb-2000]
ADI Treatments, the West Bromwich-based metal treatment company, has been acquired by Hulvershorn of Germany for £0.3m. [07-Feb-2000]
Durabella System Floors is to close its factory in Witham, Essex, in March with the loss of 75 jobs. [04-Feb-2000]
Fluidair Compressors is to shed 24 jobs at its air compressors and pumps factory in Manchester, in order to transfer production to Turkey. [04-Feb-2000]
Philips Lighting is to cut 223 jobs at its factory in Hamilton, Lanarkshire, and production of incandescent lamps will be transferred to Poland. [03-Feb-2000]
Severn Trent has acquired the US environmental testing operation of Quanterra from Corning. [03-Feb-2000]
Wedgwood is set to close its Coalport pottery in Fenton and switch production to a modernised facility at Barlaston. [02-Feb-2000]
Thames Water is to invest £122m improving the quality of drinking water in Jakarta, having renegotiated a contract with the Indonesian capital's city council. [02-Feb-2000]
Senior, the engineering group, has received a number of takeover approaches, including one from a management team. [02-Feb-2000]
Invensys is to step up its cost-cutting campaign by shedding a further 2,000 jobs worldwide. [01-Feb-2000]
McLeod Russel is planning to transfer industrial filters production from Surrey to its Interfilta site in Burnley, following the £8m acquisition of Vokes Filtration. [31-Jan-2000]
Chapelthorpe is to shed 50 jobs and close its F Drake polypropylene yarn factory at Golcar in the Colne Valley. [31-Jan-2000]
Henry Boot and Paterson Candy have won a £24m contract for a waste-water improvement scheme in Grangemouth for East of Scotland Water. [28-Jan-2000]
The Dolls House Emporium is to relocate its factory and 50 staff to a larger site on the Codnor Gate business park in Ripley, Derbyshire, and expects to create 10 new jobs. [28-Jan-2000]
Midland Industrial Plastics of Stourport is to cut a further 50 jobs due to a downturn in business, with some of the job losses at its Elmdon plant in Birmingham. [28-Jan-2000]
The government has indicated that it may allow water companies to merge with each other, provided that they give up part of their regional monopolies. [28-Jan-2000]
BAe Systems is negotiating a military and civilian aircraft alliance with Finmeccanica of Italy, but is facing competition from European defence group EADS. [27-Jan-2000]
Renishaw is looking to recruit 70 staff in a £5m expansion programme at its high precision measuring equipment business in Wotton-under-Edge. [26-Jan-2000]
CompAir Power Tools is to close its factory at Ystalyfera in the Swansea Valley, with the loss of 40 jobs. [26-Jan-2000]
Magee Clothing is to cut 70 jobs at its menswear factories in Ballymena and Donegal, and is looking to transfer production to Morocco or Poland. [26-Jan-2000]
Hidden Hearing, the Kent-based manufacturer of hearing aids, has agreed to a £23m takeover offer from William Demant of Denmark. [26-Jan-2000]
Filofax, the personal organiser company, is to close its manufacturing plants in Burgess Hill and Littlehampton with the loss of 130 jobs, and production will move overseas. [26-Jan-2000]
Explorer Group is to set up a new £3m caravan factory in Consett, in order to consolidate production onto one site. [25-Jan-2000]
FKI is to acquire SNE Systems, the US supplier of control systems to the materials handling industry, for up to £24m. [25-Jan-2000]
S Jerome, the Shipley-based textiles company, is to close with the loss of 130 weaving jobs, while the administrative staff will be moved to the group's finishing company H Armitage at Eccleshill. [24-Jan-2000]
Caljan is to close its conveyors factory in Nottingham, with the loss of up to 45 jobs, and production will move to Denmark. [24-Jan-2000]
Grampian Holdings has sold its Glenmuir golfwear business to management, in order to focus on its Edinburgh Woollen Mill and Malcolm Group operations. [24-Jan-2000]
Flare Group is to cut 50 jobs at its Hewitt Refractories plant in Stoke-on-Trent, following a fall in orders. [24-Jan-2000]
FKI is to relocate the head office of its engineering business from Halifax to London. [24-Jan-2000]
Bath & North East Somerset Council is planning to relocate the council-run Linear Way Industries factory from its Bath premises, due to potential fire and safety hazards. [21-Jan-2000]
SLI Lighting is to cut two of the weekend shifts at its lighting factory in Shipley, with the loss of about 14 jobs. [21-Jan-2000]
Motherwell Bridge is to relocate its Fielding & Platt hydraulic press factory from Gloucester to Leeds, with the loss of up to 40 jobs. [21-Jan-2000]
Alstom is to cut 730 of its 2,350 jobs in Stafford in a restructuring of the business, but a multi-million pound investment programme is expected to save the remaining jobs. [21-Jan-2000]
Herbert Green, the Silsden-based furnishing fabrics company, has undergone a management buy-out from Lifestyle Furnishings International, with the backing of Euro Sales Finance of Leeds. [20-Jan-2000]
NXT has sold its Mission division, which makes conventional hi-fi speakers, to a management buy-out for £5.2m. [20-Jan-2000]
Motherwell Bridge has sold its information systems division to a management team led by venture capital group 3i, in a £75m deal. [20-Jan-2000]
South West Water has awarded a £7m contract to Patterson Candy for the construction of waste water treatment plants at Sidmouth and Dawlish. [20-Jan-2000]
Courtaulds Textiles is planning to close its Rowley Casualwear factory at Ollerton in Nottinghamshire, with the loss of 114 jobs. [19-Jan-2000]
Thames Water is looking to generate more than 30% of its profits from operations outside the UK water industry within the next five years, by investing up to £500m a year. [19-Jan-2000]
The Environment Agency is planning to move more than 100 staff from Exeter to a larger laboratory at nearby Starcross. [18-Jan-2000]
Smiths Industries is to acquire EMC Technology, the US manufacturer of high-performance connectors, for £26m. [18-Jan-2000]
Birkin International is cutting 60 jobs at its lace factories in Nottinghamshire. [17-Jan-2000]
Trade Mark Textiles, the Derbyshire-based textiles wholesaler, is planning to set up a factory in Morocco in March, employing up to 100 people. [14-Jan-2000]
Royal Doulton is to cut 100 jobs at two of its pottery factories in Stoke-on-Trent. [14-Jan-2000]
ABB Wylex is to close its electronic circuit breakers factory in Glenrothes, with the loss of 100 jobs. [14-Jan-2000]
Weir Pumps is to close is foundry in Alloa with the loss of 49 jobs, but the pattern shop and engineering service operations will remain in Alloa. [14-Jan-2000]
Philips Components is planning a £5m upgrade at its factory on the Belmont Industrial Estate in Durham, in order to manufacture a new type of tube for flatscreen televisions. [14-Jan-2000]
LG Electronics is to expand production at its Washington-based microwave ovens factory with the creation of 60 jobs. [14-Jan-2000]
Sunderland Council is providing assistance to Connor Solutions in the development of a new factory at Houghton to make products for household appliances, with the creation of up to 140 jobs. [14-Jan-2000]
The Welsh Development Agency has announced that Sun Ya Shoes of China is to set up a shoe factory in Milford Haven, with the creation of 150 jobs. [14-Jan-2000]
Cambridgeshire County Council is to consider plans from the Dickerson Group for the development of a new recycling centre at Waterbeach, in order to reduce the amount of waste being put into the region's landfill sites. [14-Jan-2000]
BAe Systems is in negotiations with Boeing about the possibility of forming a joint venture to support and maintain military aircraft. [14-Jan-2000]
Dewhirst is to close textile factories in Peterlee and Winsford with the loss of 1,000 jobs, and production will be moved to existing factories in Malaysia, Morocco and Indonesia. [14-Jan-2000]
Harrison-Field is to close its clothing factory in Newcastle-under-Lyme with the loss of 76 jobs, and production will be moved to Airdrie. [13-Jan-2000]
Bristol Water has acquired Operational UK, the supplier of energy and environmental engineering services, for £4m, as part of a strategy to build up its non-regulated business. [13-Jan-2000]
Southern Water has awarded a £10m contract to Dean & Dyball to build two pumping stations at Newport on the Isle of Wight. [13-Jan-2000]
Villiers is to sell its engineering business for £0.7m, in order to transform itself into an internet-based healthcare company called Ultrasis. [13-Jan-2000]
Schmitz Cargobull is planning a £5.5m expansion at its trailer factory in County Durham in order to add curtain-sided trailers to its output, and 50 jobs will be created. [13-Jan-2000]
JF Turkington, the Burnley-based oven manufacturer, is to cut 80 jobs following a fall in orders. [12-Jan-2000]
Lamont Holdings has warned that more than 250 jobs will be lost at its three carpet factories in Northern Ireland, unless a buyer can be found. [12-Jan-2000]
Palm Equipment International, the manufacturer of watersports equipment, is relocating its headquarters and 50 staff to purpose-built premises at Clevedon to accommodate plans for expansion. [12-Jan-2000]
Ruberoid, the protective coatings group, has accepted a £66m takeover bid from IKO Sales of Canada, in order to gain access to more customers and a wider product range. [12-Jan-2000]
Kelda, formerly known as Yorkshire Water, has completed the £363m acquisition of Aquarion, the Connecticut water supplier, and is now seeking further acquisitions in the eastern US. [11-Jan-2000]
Otis is to set up a £1.5m customer care centre for its Express Evans Lifts business in Leicester, with the creation of 150 jobs. [08-Jan-2000]
GKN Westland Aerospace is cutting 75 jobs on the Isle of Wight in order to remain competitive. [08-Jan-2000]
Ferraris is to acquire Univak, the manufacturer of components for pressure vessels, for £5.7m. [08-Jan-2000]
VAI UK is cutting 100 jobs at its steel manufacturing sites in Sheffield and Poole, following the recent acquisition of Kvaerner Metals Equipment. [08-Jan-2000]
Hawkesbay is to cut more than 150 jobs at its textile plants in Ards and Derry, following the loss of a major contract. [07-Jan-2000]
Severfield-Reeve is in negotiations to sell its Manabo steel glove business to a US company for about £2m. [07-Jan-2000]
Douglas Equipment is cutting 45 of the 170 jobs at its aircraft equipment factory in Cheltenham, due to a fall in orders. [06-Jan-2000]
Trent Insulations of Burton has merged with Orion Insulations, and the combined business is planning to open two new insulation distribution centres with the creation of 20 jobs. [05-Jan-2000]
Sherwood has sold its sock manufacturing business to Trident International Textile Group for £2.9m. [05-Jan-2000]
Corus has sold its 50% stake in Hoogovens Technical Services to Danieli of Italy for £7.7m. [05-Jan-2000]