North East signage and graphics business Astley Signs has been acquired by a Swedish group that specialises in retail technology businesses.
Mindelon AB has pledged support for Astley following the undisclosed deal in which it acquired all shares in the business. Astley will become part of the group’s Retail Solutions portfolio.
Shareholders Gavin Redhead, Astley’s managing director, and David Forrester, the firm’s sales director, will continue in their current positions at the company, while chairman David Redhead will step down.
Astley specialises in production of signs, including large facades and graphic elements for retailers and other businesses, as well as wayfinding materials. In the period from January 2020 to the end of March 2021, the Team Valley-based firm - which was founded in 1924 - generated revenue of £15.7m and operating profit of £1.6m.
Fredrik Celsing, president and CEO of Mindelon AB, said: “Astley helps its customers to sharpen their profile and build their brands through innovative, eye-catching and effective signage solutions. For many years, the company has had proven operational ability and strong relationships with large global players. Astley will therefore be an exciting and valuable addition to our Retail Solutions business area where we will support the company as it continues its successful journey.”
Telecoms manufacturer Filtronic has announced a £700,000 contract with a US company following a pilot project.
The company, which has bases in Sedgefield, County Durham, Yeadon in Leeds and Maryland, US, designs and manufactures products for the aerospace, defence, telecoms infrastructure and critical communications markets.
Filtronic bosses said the deal is a follow-on contract for full production units, after the successful pilot-phase build of over-the-air 5G mmWave modules into the test equipment market which it secured last October. At the time, the company said the contract was of strategic importance as it fulfilled its objective to widen its client, as well as addressing a market it was actively targeting for growth.
The new contract is valued at $900,000 – approximately £700,000 – and sees the product extend the frequency range of the customer’s existing product offering above 50GHz, by adding Filtronic’s extensive mmWave specific design and manufacturing know-how.
A Blyth business firm has doubled its capacity and workforce after support from capital growth grants helped it secure two new contracts worth more than £13m.
UK document management company Cleardata has created more than 100 jobs in the last year, taking its workforce to 270, after £155,794 from the North of Tyne Growth Fund put it on target for its biggest contracts to date with the NHS.
The firm has expanded into two adjacent units, leading to the new employees, and upgraded equipment and infrastructure in investment totalling £1.4m.
Cleardata managing director David Bryce said the firm has won a £3m digital mailroom deal as well as a £10.7m contract with Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, which runs hospitals and community services in Northumberland and North Tyneside.
