Feb62017

Major investment by Siltbuster in Monmouth to create more than 60 jobs

Welsh Government
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The deal is the first to be made from the £136m Wales Business Fund which is backed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and  Welsh Government and managed by Finance Wales.

Siltbuster, which currently employs 48 people, will more than double staff numbers creating 66 highly paid skilled jobs. The company forecasts doubling turnover by 2020.

The company has outgrown its current facilities at Unipure House and is to construct a purpose-designed 2000 sq. mt. headquarters that includes offices, workshop, warehousing and storage yard on a 10 acre site nearby. All its products are designed in Monmouth and supported up by an in-house laboratory and site support engineers.

Economy Cabinet Secretary Ken Skates said:

“This is a significant investment that will create high quality jobs and enable the company to grow and meet the growing worldwide demand for its products and services.

“Siltbuster is a highly innovative company and an acknowledged authority in its highly specialised field with an international reputation for excellence. It has seen year on year growth in sales and services both in the UK and worldwide which is a result of on-going investment in new product development. I am delighted the Welsh Government and Finance Wales are supporting their expansion that will mark a new chapter in the company’s development.”

Its business plan includes continued expansion into new territories and continued growth of its industrial and recycling business (SPS and Gritbuster). CEO Richard Coulton, who founded the business, said:

“It’s amazing to think that not long ago we had just one product for one specific application. Over the past 17 years we have grown to have over 50 different products treating anything from radioactive particles to baked beans!”

“Siltbuster is a growing family business with a strong track record in a growing sector.  This new premises move is needed to help them expand further,” explained Finance Wales Investment Executive Leanna Davies. “We worked in partnership with the company, the bank and Welsh Government to package a bespoke investment to suit the needs of the business and the other funders involved.”

Siltbuster has worked with the majority of the top 100 construction contractors in the UK and has helped tackle the dirty water produced by construction work on projects ranging from Birmingham New Street station, Heathrow Terminal 5, Crossrail and the Olympic Park through to the construction of Airbus’ new UK factory and the Copenhagen Metro. Its fleet of over 300 treatment systems are routinely out on hire to the construction sector.

Through its industrial subsidiary SPS, Siltbuster provide both temporary and permanent water treatment solutions to industrial, municipal and food and drink markets and currently has plants treating a diverse range of waste streams whiskey distilleries, cider production, most food and drink processes and the removal of arsenic.

Further afield, the company operates overseas through distributors and provided clarifiers to control pollution from the salvage of the Costa Concordia and has undertaken mine treatment projects around the world. Most recently Siltbuster has entered into an agreement with the world’s leading robotic hydrodemolition company Aquajet to design and manufacture a bespoke water treatment solution, the EcoClear.

Feb62017

China association condemns murder of retired judge

East Asia
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Chinese judges on Monday strongly condemned the murder of a retired judge in south China’s Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.

Fu Mingsheng, who worked at a court of Luchuan County in Guangxi, was reportedly killed with a knife at his residence on Jan. 26. by suspect Long Jiancai, a defendant in a divorce case that Fu heard in 1994, according to a statement released by the committee in charge of protecting judges’ rights and interests under the China Association of Judges.

Details of the case are not yet available.

There have been frequent cases of assaults and insults of judges in recent years. Some have been followed, harassed and threatened. Such incidents have diminished the authority and credibility of the judiciary, according to the statement.

Feb62017

News story: Venturefest Bristol and Bath: exploring future cities innovation

HM Government
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Venturefest Bristol and Bath 2017 opened last week with a seminar on future cities. Leading businesses from the region discussed the technologies and challenges involved in developing cities that are fit for the future, in the first of a series of activities designed to help find solutions.

The Venturefest events help to identify fast-growth tech companies and start-ups within a region. They also provide a forum for organisations that are developing future cities technologies.

These might include communication networks and connectivity, seamless automation and robotics, as well as intelligent buildings, smart building bricks and in-home technology.

If you are an innovator based in Bristol or Bath over the next 9 months you can attend events that explore the themes from the opening seminar. The programme will include:

Smart city marketplace

Some of Bristol and Bath’s best future city-focussed start-ups and scale-ups exhibited at the launch event. They will be back in October to showcase new developments in their ideas. The marketplace will also see the launch of a crowdfunding bootcamp programme in association with CrowdCube.

Innovation showcase

The showcase will highlight the strengths of the region’s tech cluster, including solutions that are either in development or already in use, which are helping to meet the smart cities challenge.

Investor showcase

Delegates will have the chance to meet a select audience of angel investors and venture capitalists. The investor showcase is part of the Silicon Gorge Partnership, which includes SETsquared, Idea Squares, Invest Bristol & Bath, TechSPARK.

Thought leadership conference

The progress, productivity and promise of the region will be highlighted in the October conference. You can see first-hand what the future of urban living looks like in Bristol and Bath. The conference themes will include smart energy, intelligent transport and smart money.

About Venturefest Bristol and Bath 2017

Venturefest Bristol and Bath is one of a series of Venturefest events across the country, supported by Innovate UK. Ian Meikle, Director for Infrastructure Systems at Innovate UK, said:

Bristol & Bath is one of the UK’s most important technology clusters, playing a global role in the development of smart city technology.

Feb62017

Chinese scientists start 38th ocean expedition trip

East Asia
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 “Qianlong 1” (R) and “Qianlong 2” unmanned submersibles. [File photo/China.org.cn]

Chinese scientists started their 38th ocean scientific expedition on Monday, with the country’s first deep-sea manned submersible Jiaolong.

The mother ship, “Xiangyanghong 09”, left east China’s Qingdao carrying the sub and more than 150 personnel for a 124-day trip, the longest for Jiaolong.

The researchers will carry out surveys in the northwest Indian Ocean, the South China Sea, Yap Trench and the Mariana Trench in the west Pacific Ocean.

With Jiaolong, more discoveries are expected in the northwest Indian Ocean, said chief scientist Han Xiqiu.

The trip lasts until June 9.

Named after a mythical dragon, Jiaolong reached its deepest depth of 7,062 meters in the Mariana Trench in June 2012.

On Monday, “Hailong 2”, or Sea Dragon 2, and “Qianlong 1”, both unmanned submersibles, were officially deployed at the National Deep Sea Center in Qingdao.

“Hailong 2”, which needs a wire to link to the support ship, can work at a maximum depth of 3,500 meters. In 2009, the home-made underwater robot discovered a deep-sea hydrothermal “chimney” vent near the equator in the eastern Pacific.

Wireless “Qianlong 1” can operate at a depth of 6,000 meters.

The three types of subs are all domestically-made and each has its own specialties, according to researchers.

A new mother ship for Jiaolong is estimated to be put into use in March 2019. It will be capable of carrying the three sub types together, said Yu Hongjun, director of the center.