New government caps on Feed-in Tariffs for larger solar installations is a blow to green energy and “Big Society” community projects in South Wales, says UES managing director Andrew Padmore.

Continued concerns about Japan’s nuclear power generation capability and the likely impact on their demand for LNG has caused energy prices to rise at an extreme rate.  Electricity prices are up by 18% and gas by 22% since 17 February 2011 and look set to climb higher.

As a specialist independent energy consultancy, UES strongly advise all Caerphilly Business Forum members to review their strategy and lock down energy contracts as quickly as possible. 

We’ve moved to quirky new office premises at the Arrow Ford Building in Blackwood. Apologies to those trying to contact us recently, the new Business BT line had us waiting 6 weeks!

Catherine, David & Nick from i-com Technology entered the St. David’s Day 10k run in Bute Park in Cardiff on Sunday 6thMarch 2010.

We chose to run for a charity called Jacob’s Starz who are a local charity in Blackwood helping children with cancer receive holidays and gifts to help them shine through their illness.

i-com Technology joins the Caerphilly Business Forum

As a brand new member of the CBF, we wanted to introduce our services to members

Newport could soon be a centre of excellence for girls’ cricket following a new sponsorship from South Wales-based accountancy firm HSJ Accountants and match funding from the Sports Council for Wales.

The sponsorship will enable Newport Cricket Club to offer year-round coaching and match fixtures for girls aged 13 and under who are interested in pursuing the sport.

Caerphilly and Blackwood based waste management company Hazrem Environmental Ltd has recently obtained ISO 9001 (Quality), ISO 14001 (Environmental) and OHSAS 18001 (Health and Safety), quality accreditations. Director Paul Goddard commented, "these recently obtained quality accreditations prove that we are serious about growing the company in a professional manner, and go some way to showing both existing and prospective customers that we are different from the normal waste company. The waste industry sometimes forgets that it is a service industry and my objective is to grow Hazrem by showing customers that quality of service exists within our sector. Hazrem has grown steadily since its inception in 2004, and is now ready to grow further by providing customers with quality solutions that are specific to their individual needs".

Leading South Wales commercial law firm Darwin Gray has opened a new office to cope with the increasing demand for its services in the Gwent area and beyond.

The firm’s client base in the area has grown significantly and it is also being increasingly engaged by clients further afield in Worcestershire and Gloucestershire. With this in mind the firm has opened an office at Langstone Business Park, just off Junction 24 of the M4, from which they offer the full range of legal services covering every need that a business could have.

Following UES success as Business in the Community (BITC)  'Responsible Business of the Year 2010' , Andrew Padmore, Managing Director of UES has been appointed to it's advisory board.

UES is one of the growing SME members of BITC.  Andrew said: "From the outset, we believed in promoting best business practice, giving back to our communities and reducing our environmental impact."

Director of BITC Wales, Simon Harris said: "Profitable, successful business will be the linchpin for driving the economy forward in Wales, creating growth and providing much needed employment."

For more details on the appointment click here

As leading Welsh manufacturer, Axiom Manufacturing Services, forecasts its highest ever sales turnover figures for the next 12 months, it has made three new appointments to support its ambitious growth plans.

The Newbridge-based contract electronics manufacturer has appointed Christine Elliott, 33, as supply chain lead, Mark Henderson, 55, as technical engineer and Mike Gillard, 47, joins the business development group as a senior account manager.

Four students from The College Ystrad Mynach beat seven other rival teams at the Big Pitch Challenge which took place at Techniquest in Cardiff Bay last night (Thursday) as part of Merthyr Tydfil’s Global Enterprise Week.

The challenge involved each team preparing and presenting their ideas on how best to market a new visitor centre for Rhymney Brewery which will be relocating to Blaenavon, Torfean, near to the Big Pit, in March 2011.

On the night, Nick Hewer of BBC 1’s The Apprentice fame took a break from judging aspiring apprentices in London to judge the next generation of business talent cultivated in the South Wales Valleys.

This month sees Rhod Gilbert release his latest DVD, and New Tredegar’s Zipline Creative has once again produced Extra content for Wales’ top comedian. The 30 minute mockumentary entitled ‘Back To Llanbobl (Again)’, follows Rhod as he traces the causes of his anger problems around his hometown. “As always it’s a pleasure to be working with Rhod again, I don’t think many comedians are as committed to giving fans good quality, entertaining content in the extras.” Said Producer/Director Rhys Waters. “We were determined to make something original and distinct, and with Rhod’s superb writing and comedic instinct everything fell into place.”

Olympic gold medalist Darren Campbell (OBE) opens Precision Chiropractic, the new spinal health and sports injuries clinic on Cardiff road in Caerphilly.

Chiropractor and corrective exercise specialist Ben Goffen (who lives locally) said "We are really proud that Darren was happy to endorse what we do at the clinic.

The clinic amis to offer the highest standard of care,  which is why I treated a patient last week who has come to us all the way from North Wales! He's staying over for the night, getting treated again tomorrow and then travelling back home.

The clinic offers excellent chiropractic health services in the assessment, diagnosis and treatment of joint and muscle pain and also highly specific rehabilitation exercises. This service is there for absolutely every one. Ben Goffen goes onto say "If you have back pain, shoulder pain, knee pain, muscle pain, a work or sports related injury, it's very likely that we can help".

The clean-up of the sea around Pembrokeshire is being supported by an environmentally-conscious company based more than 100 miles away.

Caerphilly-based Draig Business Services Group has become official sponsors of Neptune’s Army of Rubbish Cleaners (NARC).

The Pembrokeshire-based charity is a voluntary group of divers (pictured at Hobbs Point, Pembrokeshire) with a passion for keeping the underwater environment as pristine as it should be.

One of our group members recently raised over £1,000 for Macmillan Cancer Services, our group charity. Sarah Thomas from Local Independant Financial Advice company Vision Financial Services and who is also our group coordinator, gathered some of her friends and undertook a sponsored horse ride through Caerphilly to Rudry Common.

Leading Welsh contract electronics manufacturing company, Axiom Manufacturing Services, has expanded its procurement team with the appointment of two new supply chain leaders.

Since starting a campaign to reduce the tolls on the Severn crossings, I have had lots of meetings with MPs and AMs, keen to show their support on behalf of their constituents. Together with colleagues from Freight Transport Association, we attended meetings with the Deputy First Minster, who eventually agreed to a study on the impact of the tolls on the Welsh economy and on Welsh businesses

I have also submitted written evidence to the Welsh Affairs Committe for the inquiry they are carrying out into the impact of the tolls and will be attending to give oral evidence later in October.  I would like to take this opportunity to ask fellow members for their views on the cost of the tolls and how they impact on their businesses.  It isn't always obvious who pays the toll, is the cost passed on to the end user for instance, or do companies have no choice but to absorb the cost themselves, or do the tolls have little impact in this region?

You can contact me either by email at denise.lovering@glencom.co.uk or by phone on 029 2085 8000

I look forward to hearing from you

Welsh National Opera has awarded a three-year contract to Caerphilly-based, Thomas, Carroll Management Services, for the provision of its Health and Safety programme. 

TCMS will be implementing a full Health and Safety management programme for WNO, covering all activities at its Wales Millennium Centre base and on tour. 

Richard Pask, Director, said: ‘We are hugely excited that WNO has entrusted us with its Health & Safety needs... and look forward to working closely with the company’s team to implement a professional management system to accommodate a staff of over 250 people, carrying out over 120 performances a year, to over 140,000 spectators around the world.’

Bearmach, the world’s largest distributor of Land Rover parts and accessories, has just announced its appointment as an authorised European distributor for Jaguar parts. 

The company, based in Caerphilly, have been in operation for over fifty years, building their business and reputation on quality, customer service and availability, attributes they intend to extend into Jaguar parts sales. 
Managing Director, Peter Whitehouse, said: ‘A major investment is to be made, to invest in stock, with over 67,000 Jaguar Parts being made available to us. The Jaguar brand has much synergy with Land Rover and will complement our existing business.’

Affinity Web Solutions Ltd has changed it's company name today to Amity Web Solutions Ltd.

The move was primarily to avoid confusion with another company so ensures Amity Web Solutions continue to stand above competition and also gave them an opportunity to re-brand the website and logo with a new and improved image.