Yorkshire Bank backs World-Beating Export Contract

5th December 2012

A major contract to supply structural steel components for the refurbishment of a FIFA 2014 Football World Cup stadium in Brazil has been won by a South Yorkshire manufacturing business.

The €150,000 contract to supply 1,500 structurally-important tension tie rod systems for the stadium in Brasilia has been won by Sheffield’s Daver Steels after gaining export funding from Yorkshire Bank.

A third of the guaranteed-load tension tie rod systems, a critical component for supporting the roof structure, has already been shipped by Daver Steels, with the remainder to be shipped this month (December). Daver Steels won the contract through Italian structural steel company Cimolai.

Daver Steels, which was founded in 1996 and has 28 staff and a £4million turnover, won the contract after stepping up its exporting drive through its Italian-born business development manager, Marco Calvello. 

John Pritchard, managing director of Daver Steels, said: “This is a welcome order for us. We won against tough global competition because we were able to change designs and manufacture very quickly.

“The order helps secure jobs at our company and also among our local suppliers. Although we operate internationally, this is our first contract in Brazil and we are hopeful of more, including for other stadia being refurbished for this tournament.

“The domestic market has been quieter for the last few years which led us to step up our export initiatives to compensate. The provision of export funding from Yorkshire Bank allows us to compete for larger export orders by being able to research potential customers and provide credit insurance.”

Other contracts recently completed by Daver Steels include components for a trio of New York buildings - Madison Square Gardens, The New York Times building and Columbia University - the Nelson Mandela Stadium for the last FIFA  World Cup in South Africa and two large bridges in Spain.

Steve Wicks, Yorkshire Bank commercial banking relationship manager, said: “This order shows that, as well as Sheffield having world-beating athletes, the city also has world-beating specialist manufacturers which can help deliver global sporting events.

“Exporting is an important way forward for UK businesses and we’re pleased to support a high-quality manufacturer such as Daver Steels”

Yorkshire Bank’s Growing Business campaign, launched this autumn, is a package of initiatives including fee-free loans and overdrafts, a £1billion Business Expansion Fund and 24 months free banking for start-ups.