Dudley manufacturer secures £175,000 for management buy out
A leading manufacturer of forklift truck attachments and skips has secured the future of 15 jobs after it was awarded £175,000 to fund a management buy-out.
Ridgeway Manufacturing based on Cookley Wharf, Brierley Hill, secured funding from the Community Investment Enterprise Facility managed by BCRS Business Loans, and backed by the Recovery Loan Scheme.
Funding will enable Ridgeway Manufacturing to safeguard 15 jobs and recruit a sales manager and apprentice welder.
Long-serving company directors Melvyn Heath and Douglas Jones decided to take over the business when they were given the option to complete a management buy-out
Established in 2001, the business manufactures forklift truck attachments and skips, together with bespoke steelwork fabrications.
Mr Heath said: “BCRS were very helpful, and Louise Armstrong worked closely with us at every stage of the loan application process.
“The funding will not only safeguard the future of 15 existing jobs but will enable us to move forward and implement our plans for growth.”
Mr Jones added: “Both Melvyn and I have been part of the Ridgeway team for eight and ten years respectively and the majority of the workforce has an average service length of between five and six years, so it was important that we were able to complete the buy-out to secure the future of our loyal workforce.”
Louise Armstrong, a senior business development manager at BCRS Business Loans, said: “We are so pleased to have delivered the funding that Ridgeway Manufacturing need via the CIEF Loan Fund to secure the future of the business.
“As a lender that delivers funding for intentional social and economic impact, it is great news that additional jobs will be created by Ridgeway Manufacturing.”
Alastair Davis, chief executive of Social Investment Scotland, providers of the CIEF loan fund to BCRS, said: “We are delighted to see Melvyn and Douglas take over the helm at Ridgeway Manufacturing.
“The CIEF fund is all about supporting SMEs to enhance and increase social and economic impact in local communities and we are confident that this investment will satisfy these objectives, particularly by safeguarding a number of local jobs.”
