A £1m investment to capitalise on opportunities in the offshore wind sector has been unveiled in the North East.
Wescott Coatings and Training Services, which celebrates its 5th birthday this year, has officially opened its new head office and extended training centre on Tyne Point Industrial Estate in Jarrow.
Supported by funding from GROW:OffshoreWind, the company now has access to dedicated training rooms, practical workshops and specialist blasting and spray chambers, not to mention the UK’s only rope access facility that creates real life working rigging scenarios.
This investment will help it to increase turnover from £1.8m to £3.5m and has already created 16 permanent jobs and up to 100 contractor positions on specialist projects.
Tom Whittleton, who runs the business with his wife Debbie , said: “We’ve enjoyed rapid growth over the last 12 months and spotted the opportunity to create a dedicated training centre that could train up to 1000 people every year for working in the offshore, oil and gas, wind, marine, renewables and rail sectors.
“In addition to the facilities in the North East, we have also spent £500,000 on two new bases in Norfolk and Northern Ireland, ensuring we can provide specialist provision in these geographical locations.”
Wescott Coatings and Training Services turned to GROW:OffshoreWind for support in making the new centre a reality, tapping into a £190,000 grant from the Flexible Enabling Fund.