Clean air tech company expands with relocation to new, larger HQ

Carlo Rava (Pharma), left, and Adam Ainslie

A clean air technology company is moving its headquarters to a flagship North West development to meet growing demand and its future expansion plans.

Howorth Air Technology is relocating its HQ from Victoria Works on Lorne Street, Bolton, where it has had a base for almost 150 years.

The company is moving to a 33,000 sq ft two-storey detached unit at Logistics North on Lomax Way, Bolton.

The site has extensive shopfloor space which will accommodate Howorth’s pharma assembly operations, plus offices housing medical and pharmaceutical operations alongside the finance, HR, IT, technical, purchasing, marketing and health and safety teams.

Howorth is retaining its presence at Raven Locks in Little Hulton, Salford, which will be home to its medical fabrication operations and its service and aftersales team.

The relocation to Logistics North is due to be completed by the end of November, with Howorth making an initial investment of £500,000.

Its Lorne Street site has been acquired by Bolton-based Handrail Creations and will remain as a manufacturing facility.

Howorth designs, manufactures and assembles ultra clean air equipment for use in operating theatres, and for the pharma, biotechnology and life science industries.

The group turns over more than £20m a year and employs in excess of 130 staff across its operations in the UK and the US.

Logistics North is a high profile scheme next to junction four of the M61, comprising four million sq ft of space across 250 acres.

Occupiers include MBDA, Aldi, Whistl, Amazon, Green King and Lidl. The site has a BREAAM rating of ‘very good’.

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Howorth’s chief operating officer, Adam Ainslie, said Logistics North stood out as the ideal choice for the group’s new HQ: “When looking at potential options, we had some specific criteria we wished to meet,” he said.

“We wanted to remain within the Bolton area to minimise disruption to our loyal workforce.

“In addition, the premises needed to be built to the highest efficiency standards to meet our net zero ambitions, give us enough floor space and flexibility to satisfy our current and future needs as we look to expand, provide sufficient office space to house a growing workforce and have good transport links.”

He added: “As the business continues to expand in the UK and overseas, the need for additional space has become more of a priority. Pharma projects are increasing in number and size, and with that comes the requirement for additional assembly areas.”

A fit-out of the new premises has been carried out by Eatock Design & Build.

Paul Eatock, managing director of Eatock, said: “To support Howorth’s sustainability initiatives, our design team has opted for locally-sourced, eco-friendly materials which have a low carbon impact.”

JLL was the industrial property agent which acted on both Howorth’s sale of Victoria Works and its new facility at Logistics North.

Ruth Leighton, JLL’s industrial and logistics director, said: “The sale of Howorth’s existing facility and the fast acquisition of its new home underscores the robustness of the north west’s industrial property market, particularly in high demand areas like Bolton, where mid-box supply is limited.”

MLP Law provided legal advice to Howorth on the move.

Kenny Macfarlane, managing director of Handrail Creations, which manufactures and supplies commercial handrails, said: “The purchase of Victoria Works was the ultimate way to celebrate 10 years in industry, and demonstrates the phenomenal growth we’ve seen in that time.

“This new factory is three times bigger than our current one, which gives us tremendous scope to improve our process, develop our staff and deliver more contracts each year.”

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