Sixty four new jobs created across Mid Ulster

Pictured (l-r) are Brian Shane, Corporate Banking Manager at Danske Bank; Paul Donnelly, Director and Simon Oliphant, Managing Director (both Uform) with Geoff Sharpe, Head of Corporate at Danske Bank and Eamon Donnelly, Chairman of Uform.

Forty of the jobs come with an expansion at Uform which specialises in the manufacture and wholesale of kitchen furnishings.

The other 24 have been created by Dalradian Gold for drillers and drill helpers exploring a high-grade gold deposit at Curraghinalt.

Uform was founded by the Donnelly family in 1993 and its expansion is being partly funded by Danske Bank.

The latest expansion is part three of a four-phase development to help the business reach the targets set out in its strategic plan.

Simon Oliphant, managing director at Uform, said: “Three years ago we started working on a long term plan to grow the business.

“With phase three recently completed, we have added another 60,000 sq. ft of additional factory space, bringing our premises to 122,000 sq ft. We’ve carried out two major factory extensions and invested in two new state of the art paint lines.

“The technology is a first for our sector in the UK and Ireland and will greatly increase our efficiencies, capacity and quality whilst adding significantly to our product portfolio. Enhancing our Kitchen Stori brand is critical to the ongoing success of the company.

“The company has grown rapidly with turnover increasing from £8.6m to £22.8m in four years. Danske Bank have been instrumental in supporting the scaling of the business. Whilst the company could have self-financed the investments, the funding has allowed for accelerated growth and provided a level of certainty and confidence to move forward aggressively.”

Dalradian Gold said their 24 jobs brings to 85 the total number of people engaged by them in County Tyrone.

They said they have also hired seven paid interns, who will be taking up their positions over July and August across a range of disciplines, including geology, environment and administration. The internships provide students with valuable experience that will help them in their chosen career path.

Locally, during the summer months the company will now support over 90 jobs; direct employees, contractors and interns included.

“Additional exploratory drilling will further improve our understanding of the gold deposit as we continue to refine our plans for a mine at Curraghinalt,” said Brian Kelly, managing director of Dalradian Gold.