Ground Breaking Ceremony for SMS’s New Manufacturing Facility

To mark the beginning of the construction of the new manufacturing facilities for Specialised Management Services Ltd (SMS) a ground breaking ceremony was held on the 10th December at the new site: Beacon Park Business Park, Great Yarmouth.

The Directors of SMS, Dave Howlett and Liz Culyer, Managing Director of Wellington Construction, Paul Pitcher, and the Leader of Great Yarmouth Borough Council, Trevor Wainwright, gathered on the construction site to officially begin the build with a spade ceremony. In addition Jon Harper of Allman Woodcock, Cllr Bernard Williamson, the cabinet member for transformation and regeneration, Robin Neve, Beacon Park Project Delivery Manager, Bruce Hart and Graeme Reeve of PRP Architecture, James Denny of Wellington Construction and Daniel Bycroft of Bycroft Estate Agents also attended, showing their support towards the investment SMS will be making in the borough.

This move is fundamental to the future of SMS as it starts to outgrow its current facilities. The layout of the building has been precisely designed to SMS’s specifications and will have easy access for HGVs. The additional land bought will enable SMS’s manufacturing capabilities to increase as the business continues to expand its client base and product portfolio.

At the inauguration ceremony it was revealed that the new building will be called Starling House. It is named after the North Sea oil field for which SMS manufactured and installed its first ever hydraulic power unit (HPU) in 2006 for Aker Solutions (formally Aker Kvaerner Subsea). The HPU award was a milestone achievement for early SMS and marked the beginning of the manufacturing success the company enjoys today.

Dave Howlett, Managing Director of SMS Ltd comments, “The relocation to larger facilities is vitally important to SMS in achieving their objectives as well as servicing the requirements for both existing and future clients. The ground breaking ceremony was an exciting occasion and signifies the start of a new and exciting year ahead.”

Cllr Trevor Wainwright, the leader of Great Yarmouth Borough Council, said: “Many businesses in the energy sector supply chain are continuing to invest in the borough, indicating huge confidence in the local economy, the skills of the workforce, the port and business park facilities, and the Enterprise Zone status.”

“Next year, the borough will celebrate 50 years of supporting offshore operations in the southern North Sea – and this investment by SMS Ltd proves that the sector has a bright future.”

The construction is expected to be completed by November 2015.