TBA Textiles to spend £700,000 on new technology and equipment with grant support

Lorna Fitzsimons, Director of the N Brown Textiles Growth Programme

Yarn manufacturer TBA Textiles has committed to spend a further £700,000 on new technology and equipment with the support of a £150,000 grant from the N Brown Textiles Growth Programme. 

This marks a return to British roots for the business, which in recent years outsourced part of its production to the Netherlands. TBA Textiles has reaffirmed its commitment to the future of manufacturing in the UK that sees 16 new jobs and two new apprenticeships created in Greater Manchester, in addition to the 18 jobs associated earlier this year.

Lorna Fitzsimons, Director, N Brown Textiles Growth Programme, said: “Although early days after the Brexit vote, the textile industry is still showing the confidence to invest which is a healthy indicator that the sector is still growing. This is helped, in part, by government funding, and a strategy to invest in this industry which is so important to Greater Manchester.”

Mark Lineker, General Manager at TBA Textiles, said “The help and support offered by the N Brown Textiles Growth Programme in the form of a second grant of £150,000 is greatly appreciated, and goes a long way to assist in our plans to invest around £700,000 into our own manufacturing plant in Rochdale over the next two years. This significant investment, will in turn, secure our position at the forefront of development and manufacture of high performance technical textiles, and, additionally, allows us to invest in our local and wider community in the form of new job opportunities and apprenticeships.”

Paul Short, Chair of the N Brown Textiles Growth Programme, said: “Following the most extensive research into supply and demand of UK textiles manufacturing in recent decades we have created the first ever textiles grant growth programme in British history, backed by the Regional Growth Fund. The programme, established in 2014, is led by N Brown and the private sector on behalf of the UK textile industry. It has unleashed significant private sector investment and job creation, addressing significant growth opportunities and market failures facing the industry. This invaluable work will come to an end in May 2017 but will leave the textiles industry stronger and fully committed to the future of manufacturing in the UK”.