A clean technology company launched two years ago now boasts Lord’s Cricket Ground and the Royal Academy of Music among its expanding 1,000-strong client list.
Green Vision Energy – with the support of a grant of £24,014 from the Nottingham Technology Grant Fund (N’Tech) – is now targeting a turnover of £1.3 million next year.
Geared towards the growing life science, digital content and clean technology sectors, N’Tech is run by Nottingham City Council and focused on small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) within the Greater Nottingham area looking to grow and expand. N’Tech grants are funded solely through the Government’s Regional Growth Fund (RGF).
Green Vision Energy, a low and renewable energy heating company, has expanded into new offices at the city’s CleanTech Centre in Nottingham. Nottingham’s CleanTech Centre is the city’s first incubator business dedicated to supporting budding clean technology firms.
Director Paul Campbell said: “I took a leap of faith when I set the business up and had to invest in a large amount of stock to clinch a major first deal, so £60,000 came on my credit cards.
“It was worth it because I landed a £100,000 housing association contract for environmentally-friendly radiator systems in Burnley and the company hasn’t looked back. The N’Tech cash also came at a time when I really needed it and I’m reaping the rewards now.”
The business turned over £250,000 in its first year, £900,000 in its second and is poised for £1.3 million next year. Campbell, 45, said in five years time, he hopes to see the company’s turnover grow to £4 million and become a self-contained one-stop shop with its own installation experts.
He said: “The system saves cash through highly-sensitive thermostat systems which keep the temperature constant rather than wastefully rising and falling. We’re really building for the future now.”
“My idea is to retain a head office in Nottingham, where the local authority has created a tremendous environment for clean technology businesses and maybe have regional offices in the north and south” he added.
Green Vision Energy is now one of the UK’s largest suppliers of the Rointe and Haveland radiators, which cost only a few pence an hour to run. These systems are in place at executive boxes at the home of cricket, Lord’s, The Royal Academy and at housing associations and private homes across the country.
To drive the company forward, Campbell has ploughed in £10,000 so far to land accreditation for the Government’s Green Deal initiative, which allows people to install green technology into properties with no upfront costs.
The company offers improvements to reduce heating bills by using less electricity, gas and oil across the board, including commercial operations, landlords and home owners.
To complement the move to the CleanTech Centre, the company is taking on three new members of staff: in sales and administration, IT and an operations manager dedicated to driving Green Deal.
N’Tech is part of the £50 million Nottingham prospectus, the city’s package to attract investment to boost Nottingham’s economy. Nottingham City Council has secured £10m from the Government’s Regional Growth Fund for grants to help fast track development plans of businesses based in the city. The funding can provide grants of £20,000 up to £1m per successful company to support business growth and expansion.
Dr Nick Gostick Managing Director of the CleanTech Centre comments: “We are very pleased to welcome Paul Campbell and Green Vision Energy into the Nottingham CleanTech Centre community. N’Tech has enabled Paul to establish an office, take on new staff and crank up his business. Now that he is here he is already talking to other CleanTech Centre residents and we are expecting profitable collaborations to happen.”
Councillor Nick McDonald, Portfolio Holder for Jobs and Growth said: “Since the launch of the Growth Plan last year, we have focused our business support efforts on companies that will create jobs and growth, but also sectors where we know Nottingham has a natural competitive advantage and something new to offer. CleanTech is one of these, and is an important part of the blueprint for the city’s new economy. Any small company in the sector should look and see what Nottingham and the CleanTech Centre have to offer.”
Geared towards the growing life science, digital content and clean technology sectors, the N’Tech fund has so far had 22 successful applications across the digital content, life sciences and clean technology sectors and awarded grants to the value of £1.8 million.
Source: Nottingham Growth Plan press office
