BEKA signs Pretek to Blackburn factory
Wigan-based Pretek Precision Homes has taken a 192,000 sq ft factory in Blackburn to build energy-efficient and sustainable homes.
The factory was a former steel storage building used by the millionaire Blackburn Rovers FC owner Jack Walker, who died in August 2000. The property is located at Walker Park and has remained empty for years.
Pretek Precision Homes has agreed a ten year lease on the building with the BEKA Group for an undisclosed sum, following a refurbishment.
Independent company Pretek said the manufacturing plant will have the capacity to build 3,000-plus new homes a year after it secured £8m of private funding from investors based in the North West.
Pretek added that housing associations, house builders, architects, and Government agencies have all shown interest in the energy-efficient properties and can now view a full-size terrace of homes constructed entirely within the factory, which also showcases technology that is used on homes in Scandinavia, Canada and Japan.
Peter Marshall, chief executive of Pretek, said: "The aim of Pretek is to satisfy a large part of the UK's new homes requirement to a range of clients in all sectors of the house-building industry.
"The code for sustainable new homes has now been fully adopted and will change how new homes are built in the UK for ever. Our advanced technology production facility means we will be very competitive financially, totally sustainable and we can save money at all stages of the production and supply chain.
"The use of sustainable materials put together off-site is the way forward for energy efficient homes in the UK enabling us to save clients' time, hugely reduce on-site costs and minimise disruption to neighbourhoods.
"Our homes are designed to last for centuries, will outlive traditional materials if properly maintained and will leave no carbon footprint on the earth if and when the home is removed."
Pretek said it looked at several sites in the UK before deciding to locate in Lancashire and added the lease has options to be extended as the company grows.
