Arco, a 130-year-old manufacturer of safety equipment, is to invest £4 million in its national distribution centre (NDC) in Hull; this stores 22,000 products in 226,042sq ft of warehouse space and supplies a network of 43 local trade counters.

The expansion, which includes a mezzanine floor, will be completed by the summer of 2016. Last year, the firm invested £500,000 in a product-testing lab “to stay ahead of the competition”.

Thomas Martin and Neil Jowsey, Arco’s joint managing directors, said in a statement: “This project is testament to the strength of our business, which comes from our firm commitment to sustained investment in our company and in the local area. Last year, we launched our own product quality and assurance laboratory to ensure that our customers are using the best safety products on the market — ones that meet the highest standards.”