Grant Helps Boost Productivity of Coventry Firm

An Exhall business which has been running for almost 30 years has been given a boost thanks to a grant to buy crucial machinery.

Precision sheet metal engineers Profab Coventry has bought a £44,000 Vipros 255 CNC punching machine, which will help increase productivity and potentially lead to working with new clients and job creation, after contacting the Coventry and Warwickshire LEP Growth Hub for assistance.

The business, based at the Bayton Road Industrial Estate in Exhall, was fighting to keep up with demand on its old punching machine, which was in constant need of repair, so Directors Kelvin Woodward and Lynda Greves looked into the options available to find a new piece of equipment.

After speaking with neighbouring businesses, he was recommended to contact the CWLEP Growth Hub, who put him in touch with staff at Coventry City Council who they knew could help and within two weeks, Profab received the grant they needed.

Kelvin said: “We had bought our previous machine second-hand around 10 years ago and it was getting close to the end of its use.

“It took a lot of time and money to keep it working, we had also had to start outsourcing some of our work to ensure we met our orders on time.

“We spoke with some of the other business owners on the estate and they said that they had received advice and assistance with grant funding so I thought why couldn’t we get some help?

“We contacted the Growth Hub and just told them an honest summary of our situation, they put me in touch with the right people and we had our grant in two weeks.

“Hopefully this can lead to us getting more work and potentially bringing in more people because we are already looking for new staff to join us.”

The money for the machine was given to Profab by Coventry City Council from the European Regional Development Fund.

Gary Thyeson, from the Coventry and Warwickshire LEP Growth Hub, put Profab in contact with Kierandeep Bal at Coventry City Council after speaking with Kelvin.

Gary said: “We are here to assist businesses in getting the help they need, we know where to direct them if they need a grant that will help boost their business.

“A lot of business owners are so caught up in the day-to-day running of their company that they can miss great opportunities that are available to them.

“I am delighted to have been able to help Profab and I wish them all the best for the future.”