£4.1m bridge upgrade delivers growth plans for North Yorkshire business

A North Yorkshire building firm has opened a new multi-million-pound manufacturing plant on an estate that is undergoing a £4.1m bridge installation and upgrade after being severely effected by flooding.

Wetherby Group opened the larger premises on Dalton Industrial Estate after work to replace the flood blighted Dalton Bridge delivered a boost to their expansion plans. The existing bridge, which has been closed for long periods in the past because of recurring flooding, is being replaced and the road realigned.

The firm expanded from its original 4 acres to a 10 acre site and has recently invested £4m into a new purpose built manufacturing plant which supplies powdered building products such as cements, renders, mortars, tile adhesives.

Managing director, Alex Chalmers, said: “We have ambitious plans for future investment and for the future growth of the business – and it will be at Dalton. The facility is capable of making around 200,000 tonnes per annum – we are well equipped for future growth.”

At the same time as the new plant opened the business took on five new employees who had been made redundant as the result of the closure of the 3M plant in Northallerton.  “We are getting ourselves ready for growth,” added Chalmers.

The £4.1m bridge upgrade is being delivered as the result of a partnership between businesses on the Dalton Industrial Estate, the York, North Yorkshire and East Riding Enterprise Partnership, North Yorkshire County Council, Hambleton District Council and the Environment Agency.

Wetherby Group was founded in 1979 as CR Building Services by current Chairman, John K Chalmers. The business began manufacturing reproduction stone products from Thorp Arch Trading Estate in the 1980s, under the name Wetherby Stone Products. After 20 years at Thorp Arch, the business bought its next factory in Ripon and in 2002, moved to its current site at Dalton.

Leader of Hambleton District Council, Councillor Mark Robson, said: “Seeing Wetherby Group expanding on Dalton fits with our long term aspirations for this important Hambleton based business park.   The work to replace the bridge will secure the long term future of this site and we look forward to seeing other businesses following the Wetherby Group lead.”

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