Mayor Ben Houchen has toured the construction site of a global chemical firm’s new chemical production plant for the region, which will help it bring new processes and production to the Tees Valley from China.
The construction of the state-of-the-art facility is being managed by multi-disciplined engineering and design contractor Addison Project plc on behalf of Lianhetech, formerly Fine Organics, which produces chemicals and materials and challenging chemistry to markets including pharmaceuticals, performance and crop protection chemicals.
The new production facility will provide a significant increase to Lianhetech’s current site at Seal Sands, which manufactures chemicals for the agricultural sector.
A total of £300,000 of grant support from the Tees Valley Mayor and Combined Authority was invested to aid the continued expansion of the site, with 420 workers currently on site and another 1,200 employed in the supply chain over the lifetime of the project.
Mayor Houchen said: “Lianhetech, previously Fine Organics, has been operating in our region for decades and is just one example of the brilliant businesses working to give our incredibly strong chemicals and process sector an enviable reputation.
“Addison Project plc, which recently expanded into the region with its Middlesbrough base and is set to double its talented workforce there, brings with it fantastic industrial project expertise, as demonstrated by its handling of the construction management element of this large expansion project, one of the biggest chemical manufacturing expansions in the UK and the largest in the North-East. Addison is also another firm creating jobs in the region and its partnership with Lianhetech is a great fit.
“I was fascinated to visit this project and to learn about the bold ambitions of this brand-new production plant under construction. This investment will undoubtedly help boost our excellent supply chains, shore up expertise and further drive job creation for people across Teesside, Darlington and Hartlepool.”
Julian Lightwing, Director at Lianhetech, said “The Lianhetech team are incredibly proud to be expanding the production facility at the Seal Sands site and to be part of yet another success story in the North-East of England. It’s been a very challenging year for us all and it’s a credit to the construction team and the local partners that have created a safe working environment and to have reached an impressive 350,000 hours of harm-free working.”
Marcus Addison, Managing Director of Addison Project, said: “We are extremely proud to have been chosen to be the principal managing contractor on this prestigious project spanning over 24 months. Our teams have worked tirelessly through an extremely challenging period, due to the global pandemic and to reach the milestone of 350,000 hours harm-free is a tremendous achievement. The safety and welfare of our people and sub-contractors is our ultimate priority. It takes a great deal of planning, dedication and teamwork to achieve this and knowing that our workers are going home safely to their families, makes the effort all worthwhile.”