Many of our companies have experienced great growth and surpassed themselves in terms of the contracts they have won, the developments they have made and the high calibre of staff they have been able to recruit and train.

Firms like Wolviston Management Services and Hertel have made huge acquisitions, increasing the Tees Valley’s employment levels and expanding their own business remit, while others, such as Day and Zimmerman, MB Tech Limited and Allerton Engineering, have brought contracts to the area worth millions of pounds.

Once again, Tees Valley engineering firms have spent the past few months at the forefront of the industry’s developments, with Corus Northern Engineering Services spearheading the drive to re-ignite the region’s infamous railway industry and others, including the Tees Alliance, SembCorp Utilities UK and even Middlesbrough Football Club, making huge strides in the search for new and renewable energy sources.

The members of the TVEP, which currently include more than 60 of the region’s engineering firms, training providers and advisory bodies, are determined to ensure that this success continues throughout 2007 and are working collaboratively to develop training programmes, events, and business opportunities that will ensure this is the case.

In July we are hosting a special event in Hartlepool, dedicated to exploring the future of energy provision. ‘Powering Ahead,’ as it will be known, will feature informative talks from several of the key players in this sector, including representatives from Renew Tees Valley, Hartlepool Power Station and NOF Energy, who will address guests on how their firms are positioning the region as a market leader in the energy sector.

Beginning this month, we are also conducting a regular survey amongst local engineering companies, questioning them on their order levels, profitability, enquiries, cost and quality of labour and the outlook for the coming months. The results of this monthly survey will be published on our website, www.tvep.co.uk and at the end of every column, using an innovative scale of 5 spanners, to demonstrate the overall feelings of the sector.

This month’s results were good, scoring an average of 68 out of a 100, or 4 out of 5 spanners.

As always, we will also continue to work with our members to keep you all informed of new business that is being generated in the area, advances we have made and events we have in the pipeline. By doing this, we hope that more people will recognise the significant role our engineering firms play in the Tees Valley economy, and support them in ensuring the industry continues to thrive well into the future.