Steelpark is still growing

Over ten years Wednesfield Steelpark has become the biggest steelyard in the country, sending out bars, beams and tubes and making parts for some of the biggest component firms in the automotive industry.

Originally the site of the Wednesfield Seamless Tube business, closed by British Steel in 1995, it was chosen two years later as the site of a major development by Corus, the steel giant formed by merging British Steel and Dutch firm Hoogovens.

Formally opened by then deputy Prime Minister John Prescott in 1999, the £40 million project created jobs for 350 people.

This month Corus unveiled a further £10 million investment creating more than 40 new jobs and turning it into one of the biggest steel processing plants in the country – three times bigger than any other UK site.

Steelpark managing director Alistair Aitken said growth was backed by Corus' new owners – Indian firm Tata, expected to announce the takeover of Jaguar and Land Rover in weeks.

Mr Aitken said development would help the Steelpark cope with growing demand from construction firms and a strengthening manufacturing industry.

"About half our steel goes to the construction industry, which has remained reasonably buoyant, but we have also seen a gradual recovery in manufacturing, particularly here in the Midlands.

"The West Midlands still uses a lot of steel – 40 per cent of our customers are within a 30 mile radius of us here."

There are now almost 500 people in total employed and 20,000 tonnes of steel held across a new 15-acre storage yard. As well as 20 new jobs in the steelyard, another 20 were recruited at the specialist automotive section which processes steel for vehicle manufacturers and their suppliers.

The park now processes around 650,000 tonnes of steel a year, rising to 750,000 tonnes this year.

The new Fabstock project – holding steel stock for fabricators – saw 3,000 plants and trees planted and a sound-proof fence and 15ft tall bank of earth to protect homees from the sound of the works.

Darren Hartley, regional operations manager, said they provide steel for anything from a gate to a superstore.