County Durham-based Ronco Engineering (www.ronco-engineering.co.uk), a CNC turning and milling specialist, is the first company to secure funding from the new £120 million North East Fund (supported by the European Regional Development Fund).

It has worked with Gateshead-based NEL Fund Managers (www.nel.co.uk) to secure a £250,000 investment that will help it put in place the extra capacity required to successfully manage its growing order book.

Six new skilled posts are being created in the specialist production team at Ronco’s Tanfield Lea facility, taking the total workforce to 38, and three new turning centres are being added to the factory floor, along with more grinding equipment.

The company is now aiming to use the extra capacity to win more new contracts, and it hopes to double its turnover in the next three years.

It offers the full spectrum of engineering services, from prototype design and CAD modelling through to final testing and manufacturing, and it counts household names such as Caterpillar and JCB among its customers.

Managing director David Steel Ronco said: “Over the last couple of years, we’ve spent a lot of time on business development activities that are now really bearing fruit with both existing and new clients.

“This investment enables us to build the capacity needed to capitalise on the many interesting opportunities we’ve created with customers in the UK and Europe.”

Yvonne Gale, the chief executive of NEL Fund Managers, said: “Ronco Engineering presented a very robust case for investment and clearly demonstrated the positive impact that this capital would have on its commercial development.”