Opportunities for Employment 1997 - Company News Summary

Toyota is said to be planning to announce a £240m investment at its Deeside plant in north Wales to produce engines for the new car that will be built in France, creating a substantial number of jobs.
22-Dec-1997

BCO Technologies, the Belfast-based semiconductor company, is planning to create 100 jobs in a £7.5m investment programme following a recent placing.
18-Dec-1997

Carpetright is planning to open a further 14 carpet stores in the second half of its financial year as part of an expansion that will result in a national chain of 300 stores.
18-Dec-1997

The government has selected Sheffield as the site for the proposed national sports academy, which will create 1,000 permanent jobs.
17-Dec-1997

Blue Circle is planning to build a £180 cement works at Holborough in Kent as part of a programme to improve UK productivity.
16-Dec-1997

Acer Peripherals is planning to build a £25m computer monitor plant in Cardiff, creating 1,000 jobs.
16-Dec-1997

Honda is to increase car production at its Swindon plant to 150,000 units next year, creating an additional 400 jobs.
16-Dec-1997

Pfizer of the US is planning to invest £110m on the expansion of its pharmaceuticals site at Sandwich, Kent, creating 1,000 jobs.
12-Dec-1997

Ryobi of Japan is planning a £28m expansion to its Northern Ireland factory that makes aluminium transmission and clutch cases, increasing the workforce to 155.
11-Dec-1997

Cadence Design Systems of the US has confirmed plans to build a chip design centre at Livingston in Scotland, creating 1,800 jobs by 2004.
11-Dec-1997

ADI Manufacturing of Taiwan is to set up a £10.5m computer monitor plant at Cramlington near Newcastle upon Tyne, creating 600 jobs.
09-Dec-1997

M&J Seafoods is to set up five new depots around the country, creating 220 jobs, with £6m of funding being provided by Lloyds Development Capital.
08-Dec-1997

Capital One, the US credit card group, is planning to set up a £30m European operations centre in Nottingham, creating up to 900 jobs.
06-Dec-1997

Halifax is to relocate its treasury business from Yorkshire to London next year, and will be looking to recruit a further 100 staff.
04-Dec-1997

Bryant Homes, Leech Homes and Swan Hill have formed a consortium to submit a planning application to build 2,500 homes north-west of Newcastle upon Tyne, which would create up to 10,000 jobs.
02-Dec-1997

Whitbread Inns is to invest over £1m a week on the expansion of its Hogshead alehouse chain next year, adding another 40 outlets to the current 123.
01-Dec-1997

ScS Upholstery, the furniture company, is planning a flotation in order to fund the opening of up to 20 outlets in the Midlands, which will be followed by nationwide expansion.
01-Dec-1997

Tilbury Douglas has been selected as preferred bidder to build a £55m prison near Salford.
01-Dec-1997

Euromed, which supports a number of biomedical companies, is to go-ahead with plans to set up a biomedical business park in Bellshill, Lanarkshire, creating 150 jobs.
29-Nov-1997

Matsushita of Japan has announced a £15m expansion at its Cardiff plant, where it will create 160 jobs at a new research and development centre.
27-Nov-1997

Continental of Germany is planning a 25% increase in output at its Newbridge tyre plant near Edinburgh, creating 170 jobs.
24-Nov-1997

IBC, the Luton based van maker owned by General Motors, could increase employment by 40% over the next few years due to a new medium van being developed with Renault.
21-Nov-1997

TBI is seeking planning permission to build a £100m business complex near Belfast airport, that would have the potential to create 15,000 jobs.
19-Nov-1997

KLM, the Dutch airline, is to set up a reservation call centre at Norwich airport, which will create 250 jobs over the next three years.
18-Nov-1997

Computer Associates, the US software group, has chosen Datchet in Berkshire as the base for its European headquarters, where it will create an additional 500 jobs.
18-Nov-1997

British Airways has announced plans for the launch of a cut-price airline based initially at Stansted airport, which will create 150 jobs.
18-Nov-1997

Safeway is to create 2,000 jobs in Northern Ireland in an 18-month expansion programme and is actively looking for sites in the Republic.
17-Nov-1997

Edward Jones, the US retail stockbroker, is planning to open 400 offices in the UK over the next seven years.
14-Nov-1997

Abbey National is to set up a £5.8m telephone service and software development centre in Belfast, with £3.3m of government aid, creating 438 jobs.
05-Nov-1997

Marks & Spencer is planning a £2bn expansion programme that will increase its selling space by a third across the UK, Europe and the Far East, and create 5,000 jobs over the next three years.
05-Nov-1997

BCO Technologies is planning to raise over £7m in a flotation, in order to help fund a Belfast factory that will make its electronics substrate and create 200 jobs.
03-Nov-1997

ADI Corporation of Taiwan is expected to announce plans to set up a computer monitor factory in the north-east of England, creating 600 jobs.
28-Oct-1997

Honda is said to have chosen Swindon as the site to build a compact hatchback model, a move which will increase output at the plant to 250,000 cars a year, and official confirmation is expected in early 1998.
27-Oct-1997

British Airways is planning a 25% increase in capacity at Gatwick airport next year, creating 500 cabin-crew and customer service jobs.
24-Oct-1997

INA of Germany is planning a 30% increase in production at its roller bearings plant in Llanelli, south Wales, creating 100 jobs.
20-Oct-1997

Thorntons is to accelerate its store opening programme, aiming to have 507 shops by 2001, and will create 820 jobs.
08-Oct-1997

National Power has awarded a £450m contract to ABB Power Generation to build a 1,500MW gas-fired power station at Staythorpe near Newark, creating 1,000 construction jobs.
07-Oct-1997

Land Rover is taking on an additional 300 workers at Solihull to cope with higher than expected demand for its new Freelander vehicle.
03-Oct-1997

Delta Print and Packaging is planning a £17m investment in its full-colour carton manufacturing factory in Belfast, creating 150 jobs.
02-Oct-1997

Short Brothers has won a £19.5m government grant to support an expansion of its aircraft parts business, creating 308 jobs in Belfast.
24-Sep-1997

Volex has won a major contract to supply cable assemblies to Ericsson, which will lead to the creation of 100 jobs in Manchester and 100 jobs in Ireland.
20-Sep-1997

Geest, the chilled convenience foods company, has begun a £40m capital expenditure programme to open four new factories in Biggleswade, Bourne, Harrow and Milton Keynes, creating 1,000 jobs.
19-Sep-1997

Rabobank, the Dutch co-operative bank, is preparing to build up its London investment banking business, and has asked head-hunters to find 400 staff.
19-Sep-1997

Iceland Group, the frozen food retailer, is launching a nationwide home delivery service, creating 1,000 jobs.
02-Sep-1997

Hays has agreed a £100m five-year contract to distribute goods to Shell's petrol station convenience stores, creating over 400 jobs at five distribution centres.
29-Aug-1997

Tulip International of Denmark is planning a £12m meat slicing plant in Wellingborough, but will close its two Merseyside plants.
28-Aug-1997

Dixons is planning to double the size of The Link, the chain of 100 high street communications stores, within two years, creating 800 jobs.
28-Aug-1997

British Telecom is to set up a £9m telephone-based sales centre in Belfast, which will also offer contract teleservices for other companies, creating 750 jobs.
27-Aug-1997

Toshiba is to expand production of microwave oven components and TV sets at its Plymouth factories, creating up to 100 jobs.
26-Aug-1997

Tatung of Taiwan is to double output at its factory in Telford, where it has started making a combined TV set and computer monitor, creating up to 100 jobs.
25-Aug-1997

GPT has won a £100m contract to support the Ministry of Defence's new fixed telephone system, creating 100 jobs in Coventry.
20-Aug-1997

Thomas Cook is to set up a telephone call-centre in Falkirk to take holiday bookings, initially employing 150 staff.
14-Aug-1997

DuPont is to expand its Lycra plant in Londonderry at a cost of £78m, creating 100 jobs.
14-Aug-1997

Altatron of the US is to set up a £4.9m printed circuit board factory at Hamilton in Lanarkshire, creating 300 jobs.
12-Aug-1997

The government has given the go-ahead for a £1.5bn semiconductor plant on a greenfield site north of Birmingham which could create up to 4,800 jobs, and Philips is said to be one of the front-runners to invest at the site.
09-Aug-1997

Hays has won a £100m contract to supply shops on BP petrol station forecourts, creating up to 500 jobs at its Milton Keynes distribution operation.
07-Aug-1997

Abbey National is to open a call centre in Glasgow in November, creating 170 jobs.
05-Aug-1997

The construction industry is having severe difficulties recruiting skilled workers due to a shortage of bricklayers, carpenters and joiners, according to the Construction Confederation.
30-Jul-1997

Arlington Securities, British Aerospace's property company, is planning a 64-acre business park opposite Manchester airport, which is expected to provide 4,000 jobs.
23-Jul-1997

Mitsubishi Motors is setting up a £2m import centre at Portbury Docks in Bristol in anticipation of an expected doubling in imports to 40,000 cars a year, creating about 80 jobs.
22-Jul-1997

Oki Electric of Japan is to focus production of plain paper faxes at its Cumbernauld factory near Glasgow, creating several hundred jobs.
22-Jul-1997

Terex of the US is planning a big increase in production at its construction equipment plant in Motherwell and the 600-strong workforce is expected to rise by up to a fifth.
21-Jul-1997

Onwa Electronics is to invest over £5.5m at its South Shields printed circuit board factory, creating 150 jobs.
18-Jul-1997

Thrall Car Manufacturing Company of Chicago is to reopen the former Adtranz rolling stock factory in York to make rail wagons, employing 300 people.
16-Jul-1997

Dixons is planning to create up to 3,000 jobs in its chain of electrical goods stores, following a 17% increase in sales in the first nine weeks of the year.
10-Jul-1997

Allied Domecq is planning a £150m investment in its pub estate, including 50 new Big Steak pubs alongside Wacky Warehouses and 50 Firkin pubs, creating over 2,000 jobs.
10-Jul-1997

Warner Village is to build four multiplex cinemas in Glasgow, Edinburgh, Inverness and Kilmarnock at a cost of £40m, creating 500 jobs.
08-Jul-1997

Waterstone's, the WH Smith subsidiary, is to open bookshops in up to 50 small towns, each carrying about 25,000 titles, creating 400 jobs.
08-Jul-1997

International Cuisine, the Singapore Food Industries subsidiary, is setting up a new plant in Consett to make chilled ready meals, creating 130 jobs.
04-Jul-1997

Eurosil, the maker of synthetic rubber components for cars, is planning a £2.6m expansion of its plant in County Durham, creating 111 jobs.
03-Jul-1997

Avco Trust is to set up a customer service centre in Sunderland, creating 220 jobs.
25-Jun-1997

Hyder aims to attract about 800,000 customers when the Welsh domestic gas market is opened up to competition, and will recruit about 200 new staff to its Swalec Gas business.
25-Jun-1997

Microsoft has confirmed plans for a £50m computer science research laboratory in Cambridge, where it will also invest £10m in small high-tech start-ups.
18-Jun-1997

Ventura, the customer service operation owned by the Next Group, is to create a further 100 jobs at its call centre in Leeds.
17-Jun-1997

Bank of Scotland is to set up a £10m call centre in Motherwell, creating 500 jobs.
14-Jun-1997

Seagate Technology is to set up a $220m computer disk drive factory in County Cork, Ireland, creating 1,000 jobs.
13-Jun-1997

Seagate is to invest £149m in the expansion of its wafer fabrication plant in Londonderry, creating 1,125 jobs.
07-Jun-1997

International Management Resources of Florida is to set up a software development centre in Belfast, creating 311 jobs for software professionals over the next three years.
03-Jun-1997

GPT, the telecoms equipment joint venture between GEC and Siemens, is looking to recruit 400 staff, including analysts, software developers and field engineers, in response to rising demand for advanced transmission systems at its sites in Coventry, Poole, Liverpool and Nottingham.
03-Jun-1997

Microsoft is planning to set up a research centre in Cambridge in collaboration with the university, its first such project outside the US.
02-Jun-1997

TRW of the US and Toyoda Motor Works of Japan are setting up a joint venture called TRW Toyoda Automotive, to make pumps for power-assisted steering systems near Neath in Wales, creating 220 jobs.
31-May-1997

Powerhouse is planning to open a further six electrical superstores this year with a stronger focus on white goods, creating about 100 jobs.
27-May-1997

Storehouse, the owner of the Mothercare and Bhs chains, is to invest £120m in store information systems and new shopping formats, creating about 1,000 new jobs.
23-May-1997

Marks & Spencer plans to add a further 1,700 jobs this year in order to support rising sales, and it also wants to double the number of stores in continental Europe to 70.
21-May-1997

The National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham has secured private sector investment to build four new halls at a cost of £65m by September 1998, creating over 2,000 jobs.
21-May-1997

Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette, the US investment bank, is to set up a private client services group in London, and expects to double its London staff to about 300 over the next few years.
19-May-1997

Midland Bank is to set up a call centre in Edinburgh to improve customer service, creating 600 jobs.
16-May-1997

Bentley Health Care, a new company being set up by a former executive of Zeneca, is aiming to raise up to $300m to set up a chain of cancer and HIV clinics.
16-May-1997

Safeway is to create an additional 1,600 customer service jobs at existing stores, as well as a further 6,400 jobs at 34 new stores planned for the next two years.
15-May-1997

Cummins Engine of the US is planning a £17m factory near Ramsgate in Kent to make power generating sets, providing 300 jobs.
08-May-1997

PowerGen is linking up with Siemens to build a £150m centre for the demonstration of combined cycle gas turbine technology at the Cottam power station in Nottinghamshire.
08-May-1997

Whitbread is planning to set up a further 250 pubs, restaurants, and hotels, in a major expansion for its main chains, creating 5,000 jobs.
08-May-1997

Ericsson, the Swedish mobile phone company, is moving its Business Unit Transport & Cable Networks business from Stockholm to Horsham, West Sussex.
07-May-1997

BOC has started work on a new £40m air separation plant at Teesside, which will supply oxygen and nitrogen to British Steel.
06-May-1997

Computacenter, the computer systems and services concern, has announced plans to create a further 400 jobs this year, and it also aims to set up subsidiaries in France and Germany.
29-Apr-1997

Hyundai of South Korea is said to be considering Bristol, Tyne and Wear, and Scotland as potential sites to build a major European car plant capable of making 100,000 cars a year, with the creation of over 2,000 jobs.
25-Apr-1997

Eni, the Italian oil and gas group, is planning a corporate restructuring which will involve moving part of its international business from Milan to London, in an effort to become a true multinational.
25-Apr-1997

Legal & General has announced a £400m plan for the redevelopment of Bracknell town centre, creating 4,000 jobs.
23-Apr-1997

Compaq is to set up a £15m telephone call centre in Glasgow, creating 250 jobs.
19-Apr-1997

Ionica, the telecommunications company that provides telephone services based on fixed radio links, is to set up a customer call centre in Birmingham with the creation of 600 jobs.
10-Apr-1997

Compaq is to create an additional 200 jobs at its Erskine computer plant near Glasgow.
09-Apr-1997

British Telecom is to set up two new telemarketing centres - in Doncaster and North Tyneside - each employing 1,000 people.
08-Apr-1997

Rank Group is planning a £1.5bn expansion of its leisure division over the next five years, including new bingo clubs, bars, nightclubs and Odeon cinemas.
04-Apr-1997

Samsung is launching a recruitment drive to fill 200 new jobs at its three Teesside plants, which make microwave ovens, televisions and computer monitors.
03-Apr-1997

JD Wetherspoon is planning to open 350 new pubs over the next 5 years in a £350m expansion plan which will create 10,000 jobs.
02-Apr-1997

First Direct is planning to build a new telephone call centre near Glasgow, which will create 5,000 jobs over the next 7 years.
02-Apr-1997

Thrall Car Manufacturing Company of the US is planning to open a UK plant to make 2,500 rail freight wagons over the next five years, and is looking for a suitable site.
25-Mar-1997

Wm Morrison is planning a £200m expansion programme for its supermarket chain, including two superstores in the south of England, creating 2,250 jobs.
21-Mar-1997

Cantab Pharmaceuticals is planning to increase its range of drugs under development and will raise the number of staff from 100 to 125 with a new research facility.
20-Mar-1997

British Airways is moving its Latin American services from Heathrow to Gatwick airport, where it will create 700 jobs.
14-Mar-1997

Samsung is to extend its microwave oven factory in Teesside creating a further 35 jobs, and expects total employment at the electronics complex to rise from 800 to 3,000 by 2000.
28-Feb-1997

Nokia is to set up a £20m research and development facility in Farnborough, creating 600 jobs.
28-Feb-1997

Virgin Group is to set up a customer service and telesales centre in Edinburgh to serve its rail operations, employing an initial 250 people.
26-Feb-1997

Calvin's Barbecue of the US is planning to set up a chain of 100 fast food outlets across the Midlands, offering chicken, fish and pork, in a move which will create an initial 500 jobs.
21-Feb-1997

Short Brothers has announced an expansion of its CRJ Series 700 project and a new de Havilland Dash 8-400 turboprop airliner project, which will create 1,000 jobs.
20-Feb-1997

Sunderland city council is planning a £70m redevelopment of the city centre, a project that will create about 500 jobs.
19-Feb-1997

Rank Group is to open a £100m Oasis Forest Holiday Village in Cumbria in May, creating up to 900 jobs.
17-Feb-1997

Bull is launching an apprentice scheme in Norwich for systems engineers and plans to recruit at least 150 this year.
14-Feb-1997

Cardiff county council is planning a £200m industrial development, including a food park, which will create 9,500 jobs over the next 15 years.
13-Feb-1997

Motorola is creating a further 300 jobs at its Swindon mobile communications factory following a rise in worldwide orders.
07-Feb-1997

Parcelforce is to set up two new parcel handling centres in Coventry at a cost of £100m, creating 700 jobs.
23-Jan-1997

Short Brothers has won a major contract to supply airframe parts to Bombardier, its Canadian parent, which will create 600 jobs.
23-Jan-1997

Watson & Philip plans to open 500 more Alldays convenience stores by 2000 using a unique regional franchising scheme.
23-Jan-1997

Nissan is to manufacture a lower-mid-sized car at its Sunderland plant from the year 2000, creating 800 jobs.
22-Jan-1997

Hall Engineering is to set up a pressings plant in Swindon and a new wire factory near Halifax, funded by a £26m rights issue.
22-Jan-1997

St Merryn Meat is to set up a £21m abattoir and meat processing plant at Merthyr Tydfil, creating 660 jobs.
21-Jan-1997

British Aerospace Airbus is to set up a £25m centre for machining aircraft wings at its Broughton plant near Wrexham, creating about 100 jobs.
21-Jan-1997

Matrixx Marketing, the provider of customer care to American Express cardholders in Europe, is creating 150 jobs in Newcastle upon Tyne, many for French and German speakers.
14-Jan-1997

Merck is expanding its pharmaceuticals plant in Cramlington, Northumberland, in a £8.5m investment that will create 66 jobs.
08-Jan-1997

Computer Associates International is planning to set up a £100m European headquarters in Slough, which should create a "substantial" number of new jobs.
08-Jan-1997

Express Group is investing £3.2m in Express 2 Automotive, a new company based in County Durham to make machined parts for the automotive sector, in a move which will create an initial 61 jobs, rising to 300 jobs later.
03-Jan-1997