Steel chiefs win Olympics jobs gold
Apr 7 2008 By Sue Scott, Evening Gazette
STEEL chiefs in Hartlepool have announced plans to create scores of new jobs on the back of a raft of new contracts, including supplying the London Olympics stadium.
Bosses at Corus Tubes hope to add up to 120 extra staff to its 700-strong workforce in the next 12 months.
The Hartlepool site - which is dominated by a series of huge mills – already makes steel pipes and parts for everything from under-sea pipelines to world class football stadia.
A growing demand for steel and construction projects, including the 2012 Olympics, is helping drive the expansion.
The site is currently running at about 10 shifts a week - or two a day. But the aim is to increase to 15 shifts - three a day - over the coming months.
Richard Freeman, business development manager for Corus’ Energy Business, said demand for steel continued to grow.
The Hartlepool operation supplies tubes across the globe to a range of contracts with its steel found in many of the world’s most famous landmarks.
Recent wins include an order for 4,000 tonnes of steel for the new Liverpool FC ground, to be built on Stanley Park in time for the 2011-12 season. And tennis stars will also be playing under a new roof at Wimbledon supported by Teesside steel this summer.
And 12,000 tonnes of steel has already been supplied for New York’s Freedom Tower - which is rising from the World Trade Centre site.
The arch at Wembley stadium, Arsenal Football Club’s Em’s Eden Project and London’s Millennium Wheel all have Teesside expertise to thank for their construction, while steel from Hartlepool is being used to construct one of the deepest pipelines in the world. It has delivered 200 miles of pipe for the Perdido Norte project in the Gulf of Mexico.
The pipes are currently being laid at depths ranging from 3,500ft to 8,300ft and the project should be completed by July.
