First business sets up shop at new Coalville industrial park

Apollo Court Business Park was developed to boost business.

An engineering company has become the first business to set up shop at a new £5.5m industrial park in Coalville. 

Apollo Court Business Park was developed by Leicestershire County Council to boost business in the town by supporting start-ups and firms looking to expand.

They invested in Apollo Court as part of their corporate asset investment fund, which aims to boost the local economy and generate income for frontline services. 

Sella Controls Ltd, which specialises in developing functional safety systems for a range of industries – including the rail industry, is taking advantage of this approach and expanding its operations in Coalville.

The firm, which works with companies such as Network Rail, Transport for London and Bombardier, has offices in Ashby and Stockport.

Ian Wright, executive chairman of Sella Controls, said that the unit at Apollo Court was in an ‘ideal location’.

He said: “We needed to explore looking for industrial space as our equipment such as PPE and materials was taking up space in our Ashby offices. 

“The unit in Coalville was ideal as it is close to our offices, based in the East Midlands and has accessible links to London. It is a blank canvas, fit for us to use however we want.

“It was important for our development to get this unit. Our business is growing, and this expansion means we have two new vacancies available.”

One of the firm’s designs is a unique system that ensures that automatic doors on trains open at the right time and place when stopping at a station. 

Ian said: “There are currently new trains being built that will be coming into service. However, trains are getting longer and longer, but platform lengths stay the same. 

“We have developed a beacon that goes onto the rail track so when a train passes over it, it gives off a signal which states which doors open upon arrival and more importantly, which ones stay closed.

“We’re the only company in the country that does this.”

However, Ian and his colleagues who took over the company in 2007, do not plan to stop expanding the business in Leicestershire or even the United Kingdom. 

He said: “The company has been going for 46 years and my business partners and I have spent 13 years developing the rail side.

“I’m proud we have built a workforce of 110 people and have sustained relationships with big companies.

“We’ll now be looking to expand our systems in Europe.”

A range of high-spec industrial units ranging from 1,000 to 9,000 sq. ft. (92-836 sq. m.) are still available at Apollo Court.

The venture is part-funded by a £2.4m grant from the Local Growth Fund, a pot of government funding awarded to the Leicester and Leicestershire Enterprise Partnership Limited (LLEP) for projects that benefit the local area and economy.