Luxury helicopter manufacturer snaps up deal for Stafford shed

A helicopter manufacturer has secured a 66,738 sq ft of space in Stafford, as it looks to develop new aircraft and engines.

Ergo 66 will be occupied on a ten-year lease by Hill Helicopters, an aviation designer and manufacturer.

The deal on behalf of Aver Property, a £300m joint venture between Ergo Real Estate and NFU Mutual, means the industrial space located at Junction 14 of the M6 motorway is now fully let.

The new facility for Hill Helicopters will contain a new gantry mill alongside a machine shop for the precision production of helicopter components. There will also be a complete composite production line and paint shop, as well as a customer showroom and lounge so that there is complete visibility of production activities for the Hill helicopter customers.

Peter Teare, CEO of Hill Helicopters said: “Hill Helicopters is delighted to have acquired such high quality space in Stafford, which secures the path into production for a new, all-British designed and built aircraft and engine.”

Leigh Burnett, asset manager at Ergo Real Estate said: “Hill Helicopters completes the lettings for Ergo at Stafford, bringing an exciting new dimension with its innovative business model. The high calibre of tenants have been attracted by the quality of the design and construction of the units, as well as the sustainable credentials which include the buildings benefiting from an EPC Rating of A and a BREEAM ‘Very Good’ rating.”

Over the last four years, Ergo has acquired and developed more than 2.6m sq ft of prime industrial space.

Harris Lamb acted for Aver and CBRE represented the tenant.