US industrial giant SPX opens Didsbury office

15 July 2010 14:58 Michael Hunt Comments (0)

Chris Kearney, chief executive of US conglomerate SPX Corporation, was joined by the Lord Mayor of Manchester Mark Hackett to open the new SPX European Shared Service Centre in Didsbury.

The 25,000 sq ft Ocean House building in the Towers Park business complex, which is owned by Dutch investor Wereldhave, is now home to 40 employees providing services to SPX operations across Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

Kearney said: "Manchester offers many opportunities for global businesses such as ours. There is a strong and diverse skills base in the Greater Manchester area, as well as good international connections and a well-developed Shared Service Centre community. We are very impressed with the region and are looking forward to growing the SPX ESSC to support our operations in a part of the world that is becoming increasingly important to SPX."

The Lord Mayor and senior SPX executives also assisted Kearney in the unveiling of a commemorative mosaic at the SPX European Shared Service Centre designed by Manchester artist Mark Kennedy.

SPX plans to have 100 staff by the end of this year having commenced recruiting in the region.

Lisa Hooley, from SPX, added: "We are currently filling a wide range of job vacancies, from high level professional appointments, to project management positions and support functions. Since the SPX ESSC has been put in place to support SPX's European businesses, a strong background in multiple languages will be a critical skill for many of our new recruits."

SPX said the new centre represents an international addition to the Manchester shared service centre community and the company joins more than 1,500 foreign-owned companies that already have operations in the area.

SPX selected Manchester as the location for its new European Shared Service Centre after working with Midas, the city region's inward investment agency, other partners and key agencies, such as the North West Development Agency.

Hooley added: "Midas and the NWDA in particular have been vital in facilitating the creation of our business in Manchester and they continue to be instrumental as we grow our centre."