Asbestos specialist aiming for growth

Lucion Environmental, which undertakes asbestos inspection and testing work for clients across the West Midlands region, is aiming for 20 per cent growth in the next 18 months on the back of re-locating to larger office space at Pendeford Business Park from Albrighton.

The investment will significantly boost Lucion's operational capacity as it targets turnover of £1.3m by 2016 from the Wolverhampton office. In addition, the new accommodation has an in-house training centre enabling Lucion to increase the scope of the asbestos management and health and safety training it offers to local organisations.

The move comes as the firm, which currently employs 16 people in the region, is looking to recruit and train an additional five asbestos consultants over the next 12 months to meet demand and underpin the drive for growth.

The Wolverhampton office is part of national group Lucion Services that has its headquarters in North East England,employs 170 staff and has an £11m turnover.

The Lucion Services group provides environmental risk management services to the utilities, infrastructure, public sector, marine, oil and gas, and construction sectors. It also provides specialist services for contaminated land remediation focusing on the complex issues of asbestos in soils.

In the UK, there has been a complete ban on the use of asbestos since 1999, however it is still likely to be present in significant quantities in the fabric of buildings built before this.

Current legislation requires any asbestos containing materials within buildings to be identified and made safe and to ensure those who may come into contact with it are provided with adequate asbestos training. Customers of the company's Wolverhampton office include Network Rail, Carillion, Wolverhampton University and Aberystwyth University.

To mark the opening of the new office at Newton |Court, Lucion held a special 'meet the neighbours' event which included free asbestos awareness training covering medical issues, legislation and emergency procedures. As it secures its client base and, in turn, revenue, Lucion's West Midlands' regional manager Ross Folley said the business is busier than ever and is now looking at growth, especially in the education sector where there's strong demand for asbestos survey work in schools.

"We are now busier than ever before and the move to new, larger premises provides a springboard for improving the delivery of local services to local organisations. Furthermore, this expansion is contributing to the local economy and we'll continue our commitment of providing vital trainee and apprentice opportunities throughout the West Midlands.

"We have strong foundations and plans in place to take us forward over the next few years to sustain our turnover growth. So with a growing team of specialists and inclusion of additional training capacity, the future's bright."

"We have the skills available to spearhead our growth as the economy continues to improve and more and more organisations look to use our specialist services to ensure compliance with legislation and that buildings and infrastructure are properly assessed for asbestos," he explained.

Lucion Environmental specialises in surveying, air testing, laboratory services and consultancy relating to asbestos in sectors ranging from healthcare and education through to offshore decommissioning and contaminated land projects. The group operates from seven strategic locations around the country.

More information is available from the website www.lucion.co.uk