BESPRA has moved to new premises in Silverwood Business Park, Ballymena, to facilitate recent growth and its future expansion plans.

The company which specialises in steel fabrication, engineering and advanced automation received support from Mid and East Antrim Borough Council's Economic Development Team. The Council assisted BESPRA in its search for a suitable location and property to grow its business.

The new 20,000 square foot premises is located within a secure site and includes a dedicated car park.

BESPRA was formerly known as B-Spoke Engineering Ltd and was set up in 2012 by Paul McGuckin, it has since rapidly grown as a custom metal fabrication and design company. The company has developed the RotoRyze LR5000v which is a new, high quality engineering production machine designed to reduce manufacturing times whilst increasing quality in a safe working environment. RotoRyze can lift heavy frames and allow them to be positioned using an intuitive touch screen control and with a lifting capacity of five tonne.

Paul McGuckin, Managing Director of BESPRA Ltd, said: "We approached Mid and East Antrim Borough Council in February 2022 as we were seeking a property in Ballymena to accommodate our expansion and growth plans. Council had a simple dedicated property request system and through this provided details of the site at Silverwood Business Park, Ballymena as a potential location which suited our list of requirements.

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"Following the guidance from Council, we investigated the offering at the Silverwood Business Park and in July 2023 agreed a long-term lease with the owners.

"In addition to the property search support, we have also benefitted from a range of Council business growth support programmes including bespoke mentoring focused on financial forecasting/growth projections and digital marketing support through the Digital Boost Programme - which provided us with essential knowledge in the area of online advertising."

The Michelin Development Fund has also supported BESPRA, the fund provides financial support to SME's in County Antrim, excluding Belfast, through unsecured, subsidised loans.

Noel Mulholland, Head of Michelin Development UK, said: "It's exciting news for the local economy, as BESPRA build on the traditional manufacturing and fabrication heritage of the region and develop it in line with new technological breakthroughs. Their RotoRyze product will greatly improve ergonomics, health and safety, and productivity in the heavy metal fabrication industry."

Mayor of Mid and East Antrim, Alderman Gerardine Mulvenna, said: "We welcome BESPRA to their new location at Silverwood Business Park, which provides the company space to grow their operations. BESPRA is at an exciting stage in their development, facilitated through Council’s suite of business support and growth programmes which help businesses put plans into place and bring employment opportunities to our Borough. I wish Paul and the team at BESPRA every success."

Since 2021, Invest Northern Ireland has supported BESPRA with advice and guidance, technical assistance and the company has availed of an Invest NI Innovation voucher.

Des Gartland, Regional Manager at Invest Northern Ireland said: "BESPRA is really committed to growing its business and has worked with our innovation and technical assistance teams to get expert advice and guidance to develop its new engineering production machine. The company has also participated on our Grow Beyond Programme which supports early-stage exporters to target and research the ROI and GB markets to grow sales. It’s great to see the company continuing to scale with this move to new premises which will allow it to increase its manufacturing outputs, drive up productivity and grow its business further."