British Steel today (Friday 4 May 2018) invited businesses to help deliver a £12 billion economic boost to Yorkshire and the Humber by backing its bid to host a Heathrow Logistics Hub.
As Heathrow builds its third runway, the airport is opening four of the hubs across the UK to spread the economic benefits of the expansion.
British Steel’s Scunthorpe site has been named as one of the longlisted locations and hours before a delegation from Heathrow was scheduled to tour its headquarters, the company staged a special engagement event with businesses, suppliers and political stakeholders.
Paul Martin, British Steel’s Deputy CEO, said: “Heathrow expansion is a hugely exciting opportunity which could bring major economic benefits throughout the Yorkshire and Humber region.
“Heathrow has already pledged to use the public procurement rules for steel, and we hope to be a key supplier of steel to the expansion project. We’d also like to play an even greater role in this major infrastructure project by hosting a hub and working with our partners to bring further economic regeneration to this region.
“Today we’ve had an incredible show of support from those in attendance and it’s clear there’s a great appetite to bring one of the four hubs to this area.”
The new hubs will maximise the opportunities for businesses, particularly small and medium-sized enterprises, to become key partners in delivering Heathrow’s new runway. Specifically, they’ll work to pre-assemble and consolidate components before transporting them to Heathrow.
Throughout this region more than 12,000 people are already employed in British Steel’s supply chain and this figure could rise significantly with a successful bid.
Heathrow spends over £1.5 billion annually with over 1,200 suppliers from across the UK – with expansion there’s an opportunity for their roles to grow and for new innovative suppliers to be identified.
Heathrow expansion is set to generate up to £12 billion of economic benefits across Yorkshire and the Humber and Paul said: “We believe British Steel in Scunthorpe represents the ideal location.
“We’ve superb infrastructure, excellent transport connections and unique development opportunities. Our bid would also provide major tangible benefits to the expansion, create new jobs and leave a lasting skills legacy.”
Andy Haynes, Heathrow Procurement Director, said: “We’re delighted to be here in Scunthorpe seeing first-hand the support for the expansion project. Heathrow expansion is a national infrastructure project that will benefit the whole country, including right across Yorkshire and the Humber, so it is hugely exciting to have a delegation from Heathrow in the region as part of the latest stage of our nationwide tour of the longlisted Logistics Hubs locations.
“Heathrow expansion is set to create up to 700 skilled jobs in the steel industry alone, with the expanded airport expected to need up to 370,000 tonnes of steel. This project will be a key opportunity to galvanise the UK’s steel industry.”
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Speakers at today’s stakeholder event included Scunthorpe MP Nic Dakin, Baroness Liz Redfern, Kishor Tailor – Humber Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP), Professor Amar Ramudhin - University of Hull Logistics Institute, Hans-George Werner – DB Cargo UK, and Simon Green – North Lincolnshire Council.
Nic Dakin, Scunthorpe MP, said: “The benefits of a Heathrow Logistics Hub in Scunthorpe would be felt across the whole region and I wholeheartedly believe this area can not only deliver a first class location but the exemplary levels of skills and service Heathrow requires.”
Baroness Liz Redfern said: “The Yorkshire and the Humber region is an incredible place in which to do business and this bid has the potential to create a lasting legacy.”
Kishor Tailor, Chief Executive of the Humber LEP, said: “This represents a unique opportunity for businesses throughout this region to benefit from one of the UK’s largest infrastructure projects.”
Professor Amar Ramudhin, of The University of Hull’s Logistics Institute, said: “The Humber region boasts excellent road, rail and port facilities which would provide the Logistics Hub with unrivalled connectivity.”
Hans-Georg Werner, CEO of Doncaster-based DB Cargo UK, said: “As the UK’s largest rail freight company and as an existing key partner of British Steel, we can help deliver the high levels of expertise this project requires. We already have well-established sites and facilities in Scunthorpe which would greatly benefit the bid.”
Simon Green, Deputy Chief Executive and Executive Director Commercial at North Lincolnshire Council, said: “North Lincolnshire has the quality of supply chain to meet Heathrow’s needs. More companies are seeing this region as a great area in which to invest. A Logistics Hub would create fantastic opportunities, particularly among small and medium-sized enterprises.”
Notes to editors:
About Heathrow Logistics Hubs
Heathrow will be the first major infrastructure project in the UK to pioneer the large-scale use of logistics hubs – aiming to build as much of the project off-site as possible. The hubs will work by pre-assembling components off-site before transporting them in consolidated loads to Heathrow just as they are needed. This method will boost the project’s efficiency and cut emissions by transporting components to site in fewer lorries. Research by WPI Economics revealed that integrating an off-site manufacturing supply chain into a major project has the potential to reduce the overall cost of the project by as much as 25% whilst speeding up delivery by up to 30%.
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