Time, costs and energy have all been saved by one business in Hutton when they were the first in the Brentwood Borough to be awarded a Low Carbon Business grant.

Knight Precision Engineering used the recently awarded grant of £7,987.20 to go towards buying a new mini mill to help improve the firms manufacturing efficiency significantly. The mini mill reduces the time it takes to produce an item and uses fewer materials. However, it doesn’t mean that less staff are required as a new employee has joined them and is being trained how to use the new state-of-the-art machine.

It is expected that the machine will save the business:

· Annual savings of 21,825 kWh of electricity
· 91 litres of soluble oil coolant each year
· CO₂ reductions totalling 9.72 tonnes
· Annual cost savings totalling £2,600

When talking about what this grant means for the company, Director Kevin Knight said: “There is no value in standing still and this project will help by future-proofing the business”.

Brentwood Borough Council’s Chair of the Business and Town Centres Committee, Councillor David Kendall said: “Running a small business myself, I know how tough it can be to find the money to buy new equipment, even when you really need it to compete for new business.

“I’m really pleased that Knight Precision Engineering seized the opportunity to get a helping hand with the Low Carbon Business grant and I would encourage other companies in the Brentwood Borough to see if they could benefit from the scheme”.

Low Carbon Business Programme Delivery Manager, Rob Robinson added: “We’re delighted to have helped Knight Precision Engineering with this grant funding and support. Get in touch and we’ll help you gain access too. We’ve already helped hundreds of local SMEs make their projects more viable, you could be next!”

To find out how your business can benefit from the Low Carbon Business programme and a grant, you can call them on 01268 758423.