Nèos International, an international engineering group, has announced that it will establish its group headquarters in Derby. Based at Westside Park, Raynesway, the move will also create a permanent home for the group’s new specialist composite facility, run by subsidiary, Nèos Composites — creating up to 150 jobs and technical apprenticeships in the city, and hundreds more through indirect supply chain employment.
The decision follows months of location scouting by Nèos International, with Derby City Council leaders stepping in to offer a purpose-built composites manufacturing and development facility.
Composite materials are used in aerospace, rail, automotive and other high-value industries — many of which Derby is home to, with leading companies including Toyota, Airbus, Alstom, Rolls-Royce residing in the city.
Carl Roberts, Nèos International CEO, said: “Derby has long been heralded as an engineering and manufacturing powerhouse — from early developments in steel, to the latest in safety critical systems for aerospace, the city has a rich history in delivering engineering excellence.
“Derby itself is famous for the aerospace and rail heritage, but this belies the scope of opportunity that such a well-located city can offer. Many of our customers and the sectors we serve are represented within Derby and Derbyshire from aerospace to automotive, and from nuclear to infrastructure.
“By assimilating several of our business units together in one facility, we expect to leverage the very best of what the city has to offer in terms of the workforce and the supply chain.”
With expertise in Formula One, motorsport, space, defence, aerospace and rail, Nèos hopes to grow its customer base across multiple industries, and expects to generate an annual revenue of £20 million from the facility within the next two years.
Paul Simpson, Derby City Council chief executive, said that Nèos’ move built on the city’s three key pillars for economic recovery – maintaining confidence, diversification and decarbonisation – and would be welcomed by many of the organisations already in the city.
He continued: “For the city, and indeed the Council, the move fits perfectly with our future ambitions; Nèos’ focus on innovation, and their diverse market specialism ticks key boxes in our economic recovery strategy,
“Its background in aerospace, automotive, composite and rail mean a number of organisations already operating in Derby will benefit, so we are excited to see the positive implications for our local supply chain.”
Tim Wybrow, Nèos Composites managing director, said he hoped work undertaken at the new composites facility would be showcased on the global engineering stage, and that the group looked forward to working with local academic institutions in the city to create technical apprenticeships.
“By leveraging the long and proud engineering history of Derby, we expect to grow our group quickly in terms of employees and projects, generating long-term, high-quality employment, as well as boosting the supply chains and collaborative opportunities available within the city.”
“Across our business units today, we recognise the benefit of supporting young people taking their first steps into the world of work. From work experience to apprenticeships and vocational training, we truly believe in investing in people.
“With the support of Derby City Council, we will develop a technical apprenticeship program to nurture the next generation, through engagement with local schools and colleges.
Gareth O’Donovan, head of economic growth at Derby City Council, added: “We have been really impressed with the Nèos senior management team and the business they have built to-date. They have big growth ambitions and we’re really pleased that they’ve chosen Derby as their new national headquarters. This move brings good quality, sustainable jobs and apprenticeships to the city, which ultimately means income and opportunity for our people and their families.”
He concluded: “As an authority we are able and willing to support businesses to set up, grow or move here. Derby has a lot to offer, and being able to attract businesses of Nèos’ calibre is testament to the world-leading engineering capabilities that we already have in the city. I am delighted we have been able to support Nèos, and we look forward to working with them.”