Steven to Accelerate growth
A former apprentice toolmaker has been seconded to help Staffordshire firms improve their efficiency and compete in the global market place.
Steven Havins, aged 42, will be working at business support group Accelerate, which is managed by Birmingham Chamber of Commerce and funded by the European Regional Development Fund.
Accelerate recently released a further £8.5 million of investment to be channelled into business development, capital grants and other schemes to help boost efficiency, workforces and marketplaces.
Mr Havins, who is programme manager at Skills4Auto, has taken on the role of new project manager for supply chain improvement programmes at Accelerate.
He will be responsible for delivering £1.6 million of specialist support to encourage innovation and improve product quality, cost and delivery performance. Accelerate's senior operations manager David Malpass said he was delighted at the new appointment.
He said: "Steve has a great understanding of the pressures and opportunities facing our industry, and his ability to build up a rapport with engineering businesses will be essential in rolling out the new funding.
"He will be a real asset to the team and a further indication of our commitment to boosting component producers in the region."
Mr Havins, a father-of-two, was an apprentice with British Steel and spent 16 years with Providence Group Training/Sandwell Training Association, starting as an engineering apprentice instructor.
He said: "I am very excited about taking the programme forward, as the way industry is moving has dictated that it is vitally important for our companies to work together to ensure they retain and attract new business.
"The £1.6 million of funding should allow us to take on another 18 programmes, so the challenge now is for companies to come forward and take advantage of this specialist support."
