Skills, public sector procurement and supply chain development were the key themes on the agenda at this morning’s ‘Hidden Strengths’ debate, organised by Yorkshire Business Insider.

“The Leeds City Region is one of the most important centres for financial and legal services but it also has one of the biggest manufacturing clusters outside London and manufacturing has a key role to play in rebalancing the economy,” says Insider deputy editor…

Bagel Nash has unveiled plans to open up to 40 new stores in the next five years and create around 200 jobs according to TheBusinessDesk.com.

The bagel and coffee shop chain is also set to rebrand its existing outlets as its new management team starts to put its plans into action.

Bagel Nash was bought from itsfounders Uri and Karen Mizrahi last year by Andy Micklethwaite and Sara…

A new survey from the CBI says manufacturers are seeing order books weaken as a result of the continuing instability in the Eurozone.

Symington’s, the Leeds-based food business, has added to its portfolio of leading names by acquiring the Chicken Tonight and Ragu brands.

The purchase of the two names from Unilever by the Leeds-based business is expected to boost its annual gross sales to around £150m.

It follows the recent acquisition of salad crouton brand La Rochelle and the re-introduction of the Campbell’s soup brand to British supermarket shelves by Symington’s.

Other…

The latest Leeds York and North Yorkshire Chamber of Commerce quarterly economic survey shows that overseas markets continue to present opportunities for exporters and that manufacturers are outperforming their service sector counterparts by some distance.

More than half of exporting-manufacturers are experiencing an increase in overseas sales and orders, according to the survey, and the majority of the sector’s growth is coming from international trade. Service sector exporters reported…

Chinese manufacturer Power Link Machine Co has unveiled its new European HQ in Yorkshire, creating at least 15 new jobs.

The fast growing international company is aiming for its UK operation, based at Sherburn Enterprise Park near Leeds, to grow to a turnover of £10m within two years.

From its Yorkshire base Power Link is looking to establish itself as a European leader in the manufacture and distribution of diesel power…

The majority of manufacturing firms in the Leeds City Region who attended a keynote business breakfast in Leeds this week say they are planning to invest for growth this year. Nearly every firm at the Leeds Manufacturing breakfast seminar said they have growth plans in 2011.

While the skills gap and over-regulation present continuing problems for manufacturing companies, management from firms including…

The verdict is still out on the prospects for the UK economy, according to Andrew Cook, chairman of William Cook Holdings, interviewed this week in the Yorkshire Post. But he is confident about the future for the family-owned steel castings manufacturer, which is investing £5 million in its Leeds site and expects to create up to 150 skilled jobs across the group this year.

Cook says the new…

Following a turbulent few months, funding has finally been secured which will enable the Manufacturing Advisory Service Yorkshire & Humber (MAS Y&H) to continue to play a vital role in supporting the region’s small and medium-sized manufacturers.

MAS Y&H provides hands-on advice and support to manufacturing businesses to improve productivity and efficiency. It is jointly funded by Yorkshire Forward and the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and is…

Bus manufacturer Optare has announced that it will keep its main manufacturing operation in Yorkshire after signing a 17 year lease on a new 140,000 sq ft factory in Sherburn in Elmet. It is the first new bus assembly plant to open in the UK for 40 years. Facilities at the new plant will allow the company to build up to 1,200 buses a year. According to reports on