Nottingham Zinc Group
14 April 2025
Sector: Manufacturing
Location: Ashfield
Ashfield Accelerator is a business support project designed to help established businesses based in the District of Ashfield find practical solutions to improve commercial operations leading to sustainable growth. This is being funded by Ashfield District Council’s UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) and delivered by East Midlands Chamber.
Nottingham Zinc Group is a family business established in 1982 and is based on Lowmoor Business Park, Kirkby in Ashfield.
With over 40 years’ experience, its services are an integral part of the circular economy, focusing on extending the lifecycle of steel products through repair and refurbishment, to minimise waste and maximise resource efficiency. Refurbishing steel products prevents them from ending up in landfills, reducing environmental pollution and promoting a cleaner, greener planet.
Nottingham Zinc’s services include:
- Zinc electroplating – this provides corrosion resistance, ensuring metal components stay protected against the elements.
- Powder coating – this gives a smooth, high-quality finish that meets stringent industry standards.
- Refurbishment – this helps customers reduce costs by re-using existing material to minimise waste and efficiency.
The business has an impressive customer portfolio which includes household names like Tesco, Ford, Royal Mail, National Rail and Jaguar Land Rover. There were 29 employees but that has risen to 31 with the creation of two new roles.
Challenges faced
The challenge was to modernise its electroplating plant’s infrastructure with an emphasis on process streamlining and enhanced data management. The key objectives are to improve operational efficiency, ensure tighter process monitoring and control, and streamline management tasks.
These upgrades will strengthen its competitive position further and support its expansion into new markets that require rigorous process oversight.
Energy bills were also a major factor for Nottingham Zinc, and it was constantly looking for ways to minimise costs in this area.
Solutions
Nottingham Zinc has been supported by the Accelerator project and East Midlands Chamber Business Adviser, Richard Crowden. He invited Systems Improvement Manager William Bell and Jim Doran, an external Consultant who has been advising Nottingham Zinc on their commercial operations, to attend a workshop: How to make a Successful Grant Application’. This covered Accelerator business support and top tips on completing a grant application.
Nottingham Zinc was also introduced to consultant Sophie Wragg of Be Your Best Version, who carried out a fully funded energy audit to identify energy efficiency improvements and opportunities to reduce costs.
Impact
Nottingham Zinc submitted a strong application and was successfully awarded the £16,056 grant to support an energy improvement project that invested in state-of-the-art control systems with smart capabilities. This project enabled Nottingham Zinc to adopt new technologies, employ two additional members of staff and it can now provide more consistent product quality and greater operational efficiencies across the business.
William Bell commented: “Where we have made investments, we have seen electricity usage halved in some of those areas as a result.”
“For a SME business like us, the backing and support has been invaluable. We have been able to take the company forward which we would not have been able to do without the Ashfield Accelerator Grant award.
Richard’s support and communication has been excellent – it’s so important for us to have someone telling us what we need to do, making sure we have covered the fine detail required to secure the award.”
- William Bell, Systems Improvement Manager
This initiative is funded by the UK Government through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) and delivered by East Midlands Chamber on behalf of Ashfield District Council.
