Renfrewshire chamber of commerce Archives

The Chamber is delighted to announce that Paisley.is has been confirmed as main sponsor of Rocco 2019 for second year.

Cllr Iain Nicolson, Leader of Renfrewshire Council, said: “I am delighted that Paisley.is will be the headline sponsor for this year’s ROCCOs event.

“The ROCCOs are a highlight in the calendar of the Renfrewshire business community and do such a great job of showcasing the creativity and entrepreneurialism putting Renfrewshire firmly on the map as a business destination of choice.

“We have had great support for the Paisley.is destination brand from the business community and from the Chamber as we look to sell the benefits of doing business in Renfrewshire.

“I’m proud of the strength and the success of our business community, and it is a pleasure to be able to honour the best of the best at the 2019 awards.”

The ROCCO’s now in their 16th year are open for entry and are Renfrewshire’s premier business event.

CEO Bob Grant said, “The Chamber is delighted to welcome Paisley Is as returning main sponsor for Rocco 2019. The destination brand has grown since launch and its important role continues to highlight our strengths as a commercial location demonstrating we are open for business. We look forward to building on our key partnerships, encouraging investment and visitors to Renfrewshire.

Thank you to all our category sponsors, without their support, the ROCCO’s would not be possible. I encourage businesses & organisations from all sectors to consider entering in 2019. Winning a ROCCO is a great achievement and competition is always fierce. Across the 17 categories we have something for everyone; from a sole trader or young entrepreneur & community group to well established SMEs and large corporates. You have plenty of time to enter the Rocco’s however please don’t leave it to the last minute. You can enter as many categories as you wish, and if you are planning to attend please book early, the ROCCO’s sell out every year well before the event.”

The ROCCO’s are free to enter for members based anywhere plus non-members that are based in Renfrewshire. The 17 categories this year are:

ROCCO Award for Excellence in Customer Service – sponsored by the Scottish Leather Group

ROCCO Award for Developing the Young Workforce (West) – sponsored by DYW (West)

ROCCO Award for Excellence in Manufacturing – sponsorship available

ROCCO Award for Innovation & Technology – sponsored by Creation IP

ROCCO Award for International Trade – sponsored by Glasgow Airport

ROCCO Award for Invest in Renfrewshire – sponsored by Renfrewshire Council / Invest in Renfrewshire

ROCCO Award for Most Promising New Business – sponsored by Renfrewshire Council

ROCCO Award for Employer of the Year – sponsored by West College Scotland

ROCCO Award for Family Business of the Year – sponsored by The Malcolm Group

ROCCO Award for Young Business Person of the Year – sponsored by Rolls-Royce

ROCCO Award for Business Leader of the Year – sponsored by Diageo

ROCCO Award for Excellence in Tourism – sponsored by Paisley.is

ROCCO Award for Community Champion – sponsored by Engage Renfrewshire & The Royal Bank of Scotland

ROCCO Award for Outstanding Performing Business with 5 or less employees – sponsored by intu Braehead

ROCCO Award for Outstanding Performing Business <25 employees – sponsorship available

ROCCO Award for Outstanding Performing Business >25 employees – sponsorship available

ROCCO Award for Renfrewshire’s Favourite Business – sponsored by the Paisley Daily Express (nominations open end of August)

The awards are open for entry until the 6th September. Shortlist will be announced end September and the winners announced at our awards ceremony on Friday 15th November at The Normandy Hotel hosted by Fred MacAulay.

On the night a charity raffle will support 2 charities including Accord Hospice

For more info and to enter / book a table – please visit www.roccoawards.com

The social medial hashtag is #2019Rocco

03/09/2019/by Brian McGuire

Lightweight Manufacturing Centre autoclave vessel

The Lightweight Manufacturing Centre opening in Renfrewshire represents “a significant step in our ambitions to be the beating heart of modern Scottish manufacturing”.

That’s according to Renfrewshire Council Leader Iain Nicolson who joined First Minister Nicola Sturgeon at the official centre opening today (Wednesday 26 June 2019).

The centre is the first phase of the National Manufacturing Institute Scotland (NMIS) which is being built in the Advanced Manufacturing Innovation District Scotland (AMIDS).

Based in the Doosan Babcock facilities at Westway Park and run by the University of Strathclyde, the centre helps manufacturing companies to benefit from lightweighting technology.

Lightweighting is already adopted in the high-value automotive and aerospace industries, developing lighter components

that provide a range of benefits including improved speed, increased strength, reduced costs and greater sustainability.

“I’m delighted to see the Lightweight Manufacturing Centre officially open and I’m excited by the benefits it can offer to manufacturers big and small,” said Councillor Nicolson.

“Every business is looking for that competitive edge while also recognising the importance of reducing their impact on the environment and I look forward to seeing local businesses benefiting from its expertise over the coming years.”

In partnership with the Scottish Government and Scottish Enterprise, Renfrewshire Council is leading development of the Advanced Manufacturing Innovation District Scotland.

Work starts this summer on the enabling infrastructure to transform a 52-hectare site next to Glasgow Airport into a hub for manufacturing innovation, home to NMIS and a £56million Medicines Manufacturing Innovation Centre.

Councillor Nicolson added: “There are already 9000 manufacturing jobs in Renfrewshire and it accounts for more than 20% of our economic output. There’s great potential to grow this even further and the Lightweight Centre opening is a significant step in our ambitions to be the beating heart of modern Scottish manufacturing.

“We have always been a place rich in creativity and innovation and look forward to supporting the development of these major investments, ensuring they bring jobs and opportunities to everyone in Renfrewshire.”

Find out more about the Advanced Manufacturing Innovation District Scotland.

[Case study] Lightweighting has heavyweight potential for all manufacturers

Michelle Ferguson is Director of Scotland’s Bravest Manufacturing Company, which is a division of Royal British Legion Industries and a Social Enterprise which supports armed forces veterans and others with disabilities. Here she outlines how they have benefited from working with the team at the Lightweight Manufacturing Centre.

“We took over the premises in Erskine Hospital Estate last year and have grown to a team of 17, with our main aim of helping people who face barriers to employment to learn new manufacturing skills, gain confidence and independence.

“We manufacture road and rail signs, specialist engineering cutting and prototypes. We became aware quite early in our manufacturing days that a number of these products had a real impact on the environment, causing thousands of tons to end up in landfill each year, so we wanted to consider a way to prevent this where possible and potentially re-manufacture them.

“As we didn’t have the technological know-how, we approached the University of Strathclyde’s Advanced Forming Research Centre who put us in touch with the team at the Lightweight Manufacturing Centre.

“I was surprised and delighted that they would give consideration to a Social Enterprise project like ours and they were so welcoming, involving our Operations Manager Andy Russell along with two of our veteran factory operatives Gary Jamieson and William Murray, throughout the full process.

“Everything about them was positive and their expertise has helped us to find a solution which we’re now exploring further. We see it as a game-changer which could have a hugely positive impact on the environment.

“We’re very proud to be based in Renfrewshire, where manufacturing is a real growth industry and embracing new technology and innovation. Many people may come to us initially because we’re a social enterprise, but they stay with us because of the quality products we manufacture.”

https://www.scotlandsbravest.org.uk/

26/06/2019/by Brian McGuire

Glasgow Airport Investment Area construction

Contractors and suppliers won’t want to miss out on a ‘meet the buyer’ event for Glasgow Airport Investment Area contracts

Wills Bros Civil Engineering Limited are holding the drop-in event from 3pm to 7pm on Wednesday 26 June at the Normandy Hotel in Renfrew.

Glasgow Airport Investment Area construction

The drop-in event includes a presentation at 4pm. To register your attendance and for more details, visit the Meet the Buyer event website.

The Motherwell-based company secured the £21million construction contract to deliver the enabling infrastructure underpinning the Advanced Manufacturing Innovation District Scotland.

Now they are looking to hear from contractors and suppliers who carry out a wide range of works including groundworks and drainage, landscaping, fencing and street lighting.

Councillor John Shaw, Convener of Renfrewshire Council’s Finance, Resources and Customer Services Policy Board, said: “I would encourage all local suppliers and contractors to come along to this event and hear all about the available opportunities on offer and what steps they need to take to ensure they can bid to secure them.

“Meet the buyer events are just one of the benefits of the Glasgow Airport Investment Area project which, completed, will create a new home for advanced manufacturing and help attract thousands of new jobs to Renfrewshire.”

The Glasgow Airport Investment Area project is jointly funded by the UK and Scottish Governments through the £1.13billion Glasgow City Region City Deal and will see new roads, bridges, cycleways and footpaths being built connecting into a site next to Glasgow Airport.

Abbotsinch Road will be upgraded and realigned and a new bridge constructed spanning the White Cart from Wright Street to an approach road off Arran Avenue, offering access for cyclists, pedestrians and Wright Street businesses.

There’s also a new cycle and pedestrian bridge across the Black Cart and an off-road cycle link between Abbotsinch Road and the A8 Greenock Road.

Work starts this summer and is expected to be completed in 2020.

Supply chain events are part of 60 community benefits included in the contract, together with opportunities for apprenticeships and support for community projects.

Find out more about the Glasgow Airport Investment Area project.

24/06/2019/by Brian McGuire

Live at Thomas Coats Memorial as part of the 100 Days to Save Coats, LNP Promotions put on a gig which just blew all 700 members of the audience away with her intimate connection with the public through music, there was wit, storytelling and even history about the Bard himself Robert Burns all in the setting of the Gothic style Thomas Coats Memorial.

The Building is doing lots of events and next weekend is the penultimate weekend with mass choirs all with an aim to ask the public for donations to save this historic and beautiful building. Here is some footage from last night thanks to Paisley Buddie Drones and Brian McGuire.

We must thank LNP Promotions, Gary Kerr, Tommy McGrory and so many more volunteers for giving us access last night so we could promote the event afterwards via video and photographs to the public. I hope you enjoy this small video we made last night.

04/05/2019/by Brian McGuire

Renfrewshire Chamber’s B2B event “Business Matters in Renfrewshire” – the largest free networking event of its kind in Renfrewshire, is now open for registration click here

Thursday 16^th May 10am-4pm, The Lagoon – Paisley, sponsored by Paisley.is

Hashtag is #b2bpaisley

50+ exhibitors and 6 free seminars throughout the day.

The day is a great opportunity for you to network with 50+ organisations in one go, learn some new “stuff” or update your existing knowledge, all business people, students & senior pupils welcome.

For event & exhibitor information click here

Register for all Seminars here

Seminar 1, 10.15-11.00 “Paisley.is: 1 year on & game changing city deal developments” with the Paisley.is team & Renfrewshire Council
register here

Seminar 2, 11.15-12.00 “Social Now to Social Wow!” with NSDesign
register here

Seminar 3, 12.15-13.00 “Doing Business with Renfrewshire Council” with Invest in Renfrewshire & Procurement Team.
register here

Seminar 4, 13.15-14.00 “How to win business using LinkedIn” with fatBuzz
register here

Seminar 5, 14.15-15.00 “How to Grow a Greener Business” with Resource Efficient Scotland, a programme of Zero Waste Scotland.
register here

Seminar 6, 15.15-16.00 “Business Futures: Accelerating Digital, Social & Transformational Tech” with UWS.
register here

Please share with any colleagues or friends that may be interested to attend

50 + exhibitors confirmed so far with room for more.

Cost to exhibit: £150+vat members, £250+vat non-members.

Contact lconnor@renfrewshirechamber.com or bgrant@renfrewshirechamber.com to enquire about stand availability.

03/05/2019/by Brian McGuire

For the month of January we are offering a 25% off discount to new members who join the Chamber.

Kick start 2019 by joining Renfrewshire’s largest business network and take advantage of the benefits of membership.

Networking
We run various events throughout the year. Our monthly networking lunches held at local hotels are attended by 50-70 delegates from businesses based in Renfrewshire and the surrounding areas. New members receive a free place at one of these lunches on joining.
Other events include: a New Members Event, Pitch and Roll Networking, HR Forum, our annual B2B Event in May and Business awards… the ROCCO’s.

Business Mentoring

Free business mentoring in an area or skill you are looking to develop for a period of one year.

Marketing
Members can tap in to our marketing channels for free. Please send us any press releases or editorial to be featured on our website. Anything featured on our website will also be sent out to members in our eNews – sent every 2-3weeks. Our quarterly publication, Business Matters, is circulated to members and is distributed to business centres, coffee shops, council offices and hotels in the Renfrewshire. New members receive a free quarter page of editorial.

Free Chamber HR, Health & Safety, Legal & Tax Services
These services give you unlimited access to no less than five business advice lines and website which features over 750 free downloadable template documents. You are also protected by £1,000,000 of legal expenses insurance which includes employment cover and tax enquiry cover.

Contact Jill Carrino for more information on how your business can benefit from Chamber Membership – 0141 847 5450 jcarrino@renfrewshirechamber.com

10/01/2019/by Brian McGuire

November 27th

27/11/2018/by Brian McGuire

A sell-out crowd of 500 people witnessed 17 Awards presented at Rocco 2018 on Friday 16th November at the Normandy Hotel Renfrew. Renfrewshire’s principal business event now in its 15th year was sponsored by Paisley.is, the new destination brand for Paisley and Renfrewshire. Chamber President Tom Johnston welcomed the audience warmly and showcased the chamber’s achievements in the last year.

Cabinet Secretary for Finance Derek Mackay MSP spoke as a special guest and emphasised the economic success and future investments coming to the area, acknowledging the vital contribution of the Chamber to the local economy.

Deputy Council Leader Jim Paterson gave the main sponsor address and highlighted the opportunities showcased via the Paisley.is destination website, considered the place to find out all that is happening in Paisley and Renfrewshire. The audience were given paisley.is branding toolkits and encouraged to use the new brand on their own media channels to help promote Renfrewshire to the world.

The ROCCO raffle raised a record-breaking £11,000 with individual pledges of £1000 each from intu Braehead and the Normandy Hotel for local charities and good causes with main beneficiaries St Vincent’s Hospice and Paisley YMCA’s digital fabrication project.

The outstanding entertainment was provided by talented emerging artists from Scottish Opera; Mezzo-soprano Bethan Langford, pianist Erika Gundesen and soprano Lucy Anderson. General Director Alex Reedijk emphasised the importance of young people building on three sell-out shows of Pagliacci in the summer at Paisley Opera House. He noted the support of the community in bringing these performances to life. Rocco favourite Fred MacAulay hosted and was enthralled by all three performers. The Rocco audience were in awe of the talented artists who received thunderous applause. The Rocco Twitter Wall proved a great hit with all the guests and saw #2018Rocco trending on the night reaching almost 300,000 accounts and 1.1 million impressions…

ROCCO Award for Excellence in Customer Services – sponsored by the Scottish Leather Group:
Winner – Polly Rose Ltd

ROCCO Award for Developing the Young Workforce West – sponsored by Developing the Young Workforce (West):
Winner NHS Greater Glasgow & Clyde – Workforce Employability Team

ROCCO Award for Innovation & Technology – sponsored by Creation IP:
Winner – Terumo Aortic

ROCCO Award for Excellence in Manufacturing – Sponsored by University of the West of Scotland:
Winner – Rolls-Royce Plc

ROCCO Award for International Trade – sponsored by Glasgow Airport:
Winner – Bridge of Weir Leather Company Ltd

ROCCO Award for Invest in Renfrewshire – sponsored by Invest in Renfrewshire / Renfrewshire Council:
Winner – Carli’s Kindergarten Ltd

ROCCO Award for Most Promising New Business – sponsored by Business Gateway:
Winner – Shore Wraps Ltd

ROCCO Award for Renfrewshire’s Favourite Business – sponsored by the Paisley Daily Express:

Winner – Pandamonium Playcentre

ROCCO Award for Excellence in Tourism – sponsored by Paisley.is:

Winner – Ingliston Country Club & Hotel

ROCCO Award for Family Business of the Year – sponsored by the Malcolm Group:
Winner – Ingram Brothers Ltd

ROCCO Award for Young Business Person of the Year – sponsored by West College Scotland:
Winner – Andrew McMillan & Ryan McIlravey – FE Live Audio

ROCCO Award for Employer of the Year – sponsored by Rolls-Royce:
Winner -Ingliston Country Club & Hotel

ROCCO Award for Community Champion of the Year – sponsored by Engage Renfrewshire & Royal Bank of Scotland:
Winner – Klas Care C.I.C. Ltd

ROCCO Award for Outstanding Business <5 employees – sponsored by intu Braehead:
Winner – FE Live Audio Ltd

ROCCO Award for Outstanding Business <25 employees – sponsored by Renfrewshire Council:
Winner – Allstaff Ltd

ROCCO Award for Outstanding Business >25 employees – Sponsored by Terumo Aortic:
Winner – Wholesale Domestic Equipment Company Ltd

ROCCO Award for Business Leader of the Year – sponsored by Diageo:

Winner – Jonathan Hinkles – Managing Director, Loganair Ltd

Commenting on the awards, Chamber chief executive Bob Grant said “Rocco 2018 will be remembered as a Rocco record-breaker. The event sold out in record time, we had a record number of awards and raised a record amount for our two Rocco charites.

A massive thank you to all our sponsors, those who donated raffle prizes and a hearty congratulations to all who made the shortlist and our 17 worthy winners.

The success of our 15th Rocco reflects the growth we see in the Renfrewshire economy. Paisley.is proving to be a fantastic selling point for Renfrewshire with our new destination brand already gaining global traction as the go to place for news of activity and investment.

You can view all images on our Facebook page and comments on #2018Rocco. I encourage all Rocco winners to utilise their win across their PR channels. Thank you to the entire Chamber team for all their work before and on the night to ensure our 500 guests had a great time. Special thanks to principle sponsor Paisley.is, Diageo who supplied our drinks reception, Cameron Presentations & Gap TV for all the AV, Mark from Flash Bang Booth, The Printbrokers for the program, Gary from NS Design for the excellent social media coverage and the Normandy Hotel for the superb meal and service.

Finally, thank you to Scottish Opera. It was a privilege to watch performances from three 2018/19 Emerging Artists: mezzo-soprano Bethan Langford, pianist Erika Gundesen and soprano Lucy Anderson. Planning for Rocco 2019 is already underway, and we hope to see you enter and attend next year.”

20/11/2018/by Brian McGuire

Paisley Abbey and Paisley Town Hall lit up in red

Hundreds attended Paisley Abbey for a special service to mark the centenary of the signing of the Armistice, which signalled the end of the First World War.

Minister for Paisley Abbey, Reverend Alan Birss, led a short service of commemoration for those who gave all in service to their country with a poignant reading and prayer.

Renfrewshire’s Provost Lorraine Cameron was joined by a young person and an ex-serviceman to light a candle of remembrance in the Abbey for all those who never returned home.

The service was followed by a concert of music, song and poetry performed by the Starlight Youth Music Theatre, Chamber Choir and the Johnstone Brass Band, as they honoured the Armed Forces who have given so much.

Renfrewshire Provost Lorriane Cameron prepares to light a candle with a young person

Chamber Choir accompanies by Johnstone Brass Band

Clear outlines represented those who are no longer with us (2)

Communties came together from across Renfrewshire to pay their respects to the fallen

Clear outlines represented those who are no longer with us

The Abbey and Paisley Town Hall were also lit up in red to mark the occasion.

All proceeds from a collection on the night will be donated to Poppy Scotland and There But Not There.

Provost Cameron, who also attended the 10:45am service in Paisley, said: “This was a moving, poignant service in remembrance of those who made the ultimate sacrifice to allow us to have the lives we have today.

“We cannot express enough gratitude to our Armed Forces and it’s extremely important that we continue to honour them on Remembrance Sunday, and all year round as well.

“It was fantastic to see the number of people who attended services across Renfrewshire to pay tribute to the fallen, especially this year as we marked 100 years since the end of the First World War.”

Another nine events were held across Renfrewshire on Remembrance Sunday to allow all communities the opportunity to pay their respects to the fallen.

Renfrewshire’s also hosted its annual Children’s Remembrance Service on Friday 9 November at Mossvale and St James Primary School in Paisley, where pupils performed poetry and sang as they showcased their learning about why we celebrate Remembrance Day.

Veterans from the Royal British Legion Scotland (Paisley Comrades Division) were there to give pupils the opportunity to ask questions about their experiences and the work of the Legion, before a two-minute silence was observed at 10am.

For more information on why we mark Remembrance Day every year, visit www.britishlegion.org.uk/remembrance.

12/11/2018/by Brian McGuire

Renfrewshire Council Provost awards 9.3.18

Who are your local heroes?

Renfrewshire’s inspiring local heroes are set to be rewarded as nominations for the Provost’s Community Awards open for 2019.

Renfrewshire Council Provost awards 9.3.18

Extraordinary employees, superlative sportspeople and compassionate carers are being sought as the awards recognise the people who make Renfrewshire a better place to live, work and visit.

There are five categories available to nominate in, including a revamped award for employees to recognise those stars in the workplace, and these are:

Community Volunteer (sponsored by Glasgow Airport Ltd)
Community Group (sponsored by the Piazza Shopping Centre)
Sporting Achievement (sponsored by ACRE Industrial)
Employee of the Year (sponsored by UNISON Renfrewshire)
Carers Award (sponsored by former Provost Nancy Allison)
Arts and Culture award (sponsored by Renfrewshire Council)

Renfrewshire’s Provost Lorraine Cameron said: “As the Provost, I meet hundreds of inspiring people and groups every year and it never ceases to amaze me that there is so much fantastic work going on throughout Renfrewshire.

Renfrewshire Council Provost awards 9.3.18

“These awards are an opportunity to pay tribute to the unsung heroes of the area who go the extra mile without looking for a reward and give them the recognition that they deserve.

“I can’t wait to read the nominations so don’t miss out on the chance to nominate and start sending them in now.”

Renfrewshire Council Provost awards 9.3.18

The deadline for entries to all categories is Wednesday 12 December.

The Provost will be joined by the award sponsors and other local elected members to choose the winners who will be invited, along with their nominator, to the awards ceremony on Friday 15 March 2019 and the Lynnhurst Hotel in Johnstone.

For more information, and to submit your nomination, visit www.renfrewshire.gov.uk/provostawards2019, email provostawards@renfrewshire.gov.uk or call 0141 618 7102.

17/10/2018/by Brian McGuire