NEWS
HOW SHARON HAS SHINED
One of Sharon Hutchinson ’ s former employers wasn ’ t the only person to tell me I ’ d made a smart move by appointing her as a business manager for my beloved magazine that I launched eight years ago .
Finley Structures celebrated its 20th anniversary – left to right is the firm ’ s managing director Julie Raistrick , Paul Howell MP , John and Valeria Palmer ( centre , back ), Esther McVey MP and director Gary Finley . Picture by Tom Banks .
2020 VISION
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leading politician praised a familyrun County Durham construction company as it celebrated its 20th anniversary .
Former Secretary of State and one-time Tory leadership candidate Esther McVey visited Finley Structures in Newton Aycliffe , with local MP Paul Howell , to mark the firm ’ s milestone .
The steel fabrication specialists , who helped to construct the nearby Hitachi Rail factory , was formed by John Finley in August 2000 .
It has worked on a number of high-profile projects in the North-East and around the UK over the years , including factories for Nissan in Sunderland , Teesside University ’ s awardwinning Curve building and the Victoria Gate shopping centre in Leeds .
It is also currently helping to construct the huge Riverwalk development in Durham city centre .
Ms McVey , currently the Conservative MP for Tatton and former Housing and Communities Secretary , said : “ Finley Structures couldn ’ t have the 20th anniversary celebration they would have liked , but it ’ s all about the people .
“ You don ’ t have a great business without great people and the vision going forward .
“ Celebrating 20 years is fantastic . It shows the resilience of the founder , John Finley , who started out as a steel erector then he had the vision to start this business 20 years ago .
“ Now they ’ re creating jobs for their local community and providing work for future generations – it ’ s a fantastic story .”
The Conservative MP for Sedgefield Mr Howell added : “ Getting round our local companies and seeing what they ’ re doing is wonderful – these businesses are the lifeblood of our economy .
“ We ’ ve heard today about the Hitachi factory which Finley Structures helped construct , but there ’ s also other major projects like Milburngate in Durham and the new Durham County Council head office .
Family-run steel firm celebrates 20th anniversary with special visit
“ All of these big projects are coming out of Aycliffe Business Park , which is brilliant .”
The two politicians were given a brief tour of Finley Structures ’ vast site on Aycliffe Business Park , which was bustling with steelwork running through its factory floor .
Mr Howell added : “ We met some of the staff , one of which has been with the company since it started 20 years ago , and many other longserving employees , which shows to me the quality of a company .
“ They ’ re clearly doing the right thing and I applaud them for their anniversary .”
Finley Structures managing director Julie Raistrick added : “ We ’ re naturally delighted to celebrate our 20th anniversary , it ’ s a milestone we ’ re all incredibly proud of .
“ We ’ ve invested heavily in our site , our people and state-of-the-art steel fabrication facilities over the years which saw us through the financial crisis , and we ’ re confident it will stand us in good stead during this current climate .
“ We ’ re grateful to Esther McVey and Paul Howell for coming to celebrate our birthday , which was all done socially distanced , of course – let ’ s hope we can celebrate our 25th anniversary in a bigger way .”
From its eight-acre site in Aycliffe , Finley Structures provide a wide range of structural solutions to the construction industry and offer a range of in-house services – including estimating , design and detailing , steel fabrication , painting and installation – enabling a cost-effective and efficient all-round service to main contractors .
The firm works with major contractors all around the UK , including Sir Robert McAlpine , Tolent , Bowmer & Kirkland , Willmott Dixon , BAM Construction and Galliford Try .
Read Peter Barron ’ s special in-depth feature with Finley Structures managing director Julie Raistrick on pages 16-19 .
“ It ’ s in safe hands ” was the message I received from several people when Sharon took over the operational and sales reins of Aycliffe Business at the start of 2020 .
Who knew then we were all set for the biggest business challenge of our lives ?
Despite lockdown – which , although only six / seven months ago , seems like a lifetime ago – Sharon somehow continued to keep Aycliffe Business going , at a time when publishing – like so many sectors – was staring down the barrel of a gun .
No meetings , no networking events , en masse home-working . For a business magazine that survives on B2B sales , it was a recipe for disaster .
Sharon has not only managed to publish three issues of Aycliffe Business since lockdown , she has done it with her inimitable style with a smile . Nothing is a problem .
Although it will be some time before we can get back to ‘ real ’ networking events , Sharon has arranged for an informal online networking event , to be held on October 23 , from 9.30am .
There ’ ll be break-out rooms , with a chance to network more intimately with a handful of fellow delegates , and we ’ ll update the group with positive local news .
I should make it clear that this is separate to the online events organised by Aycliffe Business Park Community , with the help of Business Durham , which have been well attended so far .
This event is to update people on where we are with Aycliffe Business – and we promise to have a few surprises up our sleeve !
We ’ re hoping to have more than 50 businesses in attendance , and it would be great to see you all there .
Check Aycliffe Today ’ s social media channels for links to register . Thanks
Martin Walker Managing editor , Aycliffe Business
The magazine for Aycliffe Business Park | 9