Sarah Slaven – interim
managing director at
Business Durham.
How Jade Business
Park is changing the
property landscape
of Wearside
NEW HORIZONS
Jade Business Park made an instant
impression in Wearside when Global
Fortune-500 company Sumitomo Electrical
Wiring Systems Europe moved into their
brand-new, custom-built 50,000 sq ft unit
on the 55-acre employment site in July of
this year.
For businesses in Wearside and the
wider North-East – it’s not hard to see
why phase one of the 155,000 sq ft site has
become hot property, with its enviable
location and business rates savings up
to £275,000, the outlook for Business
Durham’s latest property looks bright for
the new County Durham business park.
A lot has happened since work started
on the employment site Jade Business Park
located at Murton, Seaham, in County
Durham.
Despite the challenges posed by the
coronavirus pandemic, phase one of Jade
Business Park was completed in August
2020.
With one tenant already on-site and
strong interest resulting in regular
viewings, Jade is firmly establishing itself
as a key employment location on the
North-East landscape.
The Durham County Council-owned
site, managed by Business Durham,
provides seven new industrial units from
Jade Business Park
– phase one of the 55-
acre site in Seaham was
completed in August.
11,109 sq ft (1,032 sqm) to 50,000 sq ft.
These industrial buildings come with
service yards and integrated offices. The site
offers excellent connectivity, moments from
the A19 and Dalton Park on the outskirts of
Murton, with easy access to ports, airports
and train stations.
The A19 trunk road provides links to
Sunderland, Tyneside, Teesside and on to
the motorway network. Jade lies just 10
miles from Nissan Motor Company, 12 miles
from the Port of Tyne and 28 miles from
Newcastle International Airport.
The park’s location makes it the perfect
base for companies involved in the
automotive supply chain. Businesses like
Jade’s first tenants Sumitomo Electrical
Wiring Systems Europe (SEWS-E).
On the move Mike Hall, DC manager at
SEWS-E, explained why Jade was the perfect
location for Sumitomo: “The site’s location
and offer is perfect for us. It is just six miles
away from our previous facility which we
have outgrown, close to the motorway and to
our major customers.
“Our new building is purpose-built,
enabling us to grow and also accommodate a
number of exciting new projects that we have
in the pipeline.”
Jade Business Park has big ambitions,
not only will the site provide much needed
industrial property in East Durham with the
potential for over one million square feet of
new employment space, it will also bring a
significant number of jobs to the county.
Sarah Slaven, interim managing director
at Business Durham, explains: “It’s a very
exciting year for Jade Business Park as we
welcome our first tenant Sumitomo, bringing
new jobs and economic growth to the area.
“The park is a prime location for
businesses to establish themselves in
Durham for relocation and expansion,
thanks to its high-quality industrial units
and excellent transport links.
“As the economy moves into the recovery
we continue to support businesses to grow
and create more and better jobs, we hope
to welcome more businesses to one of the
region’s premier developments in the near
future.”
The construction of the new industrial
units has been made possible by an
investment of £14m from Durham County
Council.
This investment is part of county council
and Business Durham strategy to create
an environment where businesses can get
back on track and thrive by providing the
right infrastructure, funding and support to
enable them to do so.
Additional support for highway and
infrastructure works has come from the
North East Local Enterprise Partnership and
the Highways Agency.
It will help fund a programme of works
to increase the capacity of the A19/A182
junctions serving the business park, which
will allow for future growth.
For more information visit
jadebusinesspark.co.uk.
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