Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, the Rt Hon Karen Bradley MP said:

The disorder in Derry/Londonderry last night, including targeted attacks on police vehicles and others, was completely unacceptable. These sustained attacks have been widely condemned and must end.

My full support goes to the PSNI and others who are working so hard to end this intolerable violence by a small minority.

The Sir Michael Latham award was created by the Government to recognise construction firms who adopt modern methods of construction, innovative technology, collaborative working and high quality apprenticeships.

Mace is a leading British construction company and is being recognised for their innovative ‘Rising Factory’ method, where a factory climbs up a building as both the structure and internal rooms are built within.

The awards are independently judged by construction industry experts who called Mace’s entry an ‘ingenious development’, and one which is likely to be adopted across the industry over the next few years. This approach is estimated to make construction safer, 25% faster and to cut waste by 75%.

The award is supported by the IPA, part of the Treasury, and BEIS. It was created in Sir Michael Latham’s honour as one of the first individuals to advocate for greater modernisation of the construction sector in his 1994 Constructing the Team report.

This is the first time the award has been presented at the 2018 Construction News Awards, where Mace also won Best Innovation for its ‘Rising Factory’.

It follows publication of the Construction Sector Deal and Transforming Infrastructure Performance programme – the Government’s long term plans to improve productivity of the sector.

The Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury, Robert Jenrick MP, speaking at the award ceremony last night said:

“We are backing Britain with record investment in infrastructure so we can build a country that is fit for the future.

“The construction industry must play its part by closing its £15 billion annual productivity gap.

“Mace’s innovative way of building has the potential to increase safety and efficiency right across the sector.”

Business and Industry Minister Richard Harrington MP, said:

“Mace is championing the sort of innovation, collaboration and investment in skills that must become standard practice in the construction sector to meet the nation’s infrastructure and housing needs.

“The government has made the biggest investment in construction for at least a decade through our modern Industrial Strategy and Construction Sector Deal, and together with industry we are working to create buildings that are smarter, safer and cheaper to run.”

Chief Executive of Mace, Mark Reynolds said:

“We are hugely honoured to receive the Sir Michael Latham Award for our work on the rising factories at N08 East Village. Sir Michael’s work had a massive impact on the construction industry, encouraging us all to push forward innovation, improve how we work and build on his legacy.

“For Mace, the rising factories represent an evolution of how we can deliver buildings, and this award is a fantastic recognition of all the hard work done by our project team and supply chain to make that a reality. It’s also important to acknowledge that we can’t deliver innovation like this on our own – this award would not have been possible without the support of our clients.”

Established in 2004, Cambridge-based Cocoda works with small luxury brands to help market and sell their products internationally.

The business recently secured a new contract with a Japanese distributor after attending a Global Food Forum meet the buyer event in Newmarket last year.

The contract will see products from Holdsworth Chocolates and Duncan’s of Deeside delivered to Japan, to be sold in department stores, delicatessens and gourmet food stores nationally. Its success proves the growing global appetite for British chocolate, with over £680 million being snapped up by overseas consumers last year.

The company currently works with 6 premium brands across the UK including Prestat, Simply Delicious, Summerdown Mint and Pulsetta. They export to 25 countries including North America, Europe, Asia, the Middle East and Australasia.

David Hill, Managing Director at Cocoda, said:

As you can imagine, taste is the most important factor when selling luxury chocolate, biscuits and confectionery. Attending DIT-hosted events and trade missions enabled me to meet potential buyers face-to-face, and treat them to our delicious range of biscuits, confectionery and chocolate, which helped secure further sales.

The global appetite for British food and drink is growing all the time, so it’s an amazing opportunity for home-grown producers, but there are certain regulations around packaging and ingredients that vary from country to country.

Working with DIT helped Cocoda to navigate these with ease, and prepared the business and its brands for what to expect when exporting to a new market for the first time. For example, when selling to buyers in the Middle East products like our champagne truffles were removed from the tasting lists because they contain alcohol, which is only available for purchase at licensed venues.

Exporting has been fundamental to the business success, and helped to expand the global customer base for all the brands in Cocoda’s portfolio. If these brands can capitalise on the demand for luxury British products across the globe, so can other East of England businesses.

As part of its commitment to encouraging local businesses to export, Department for International Trade (DIT) hosts regular networking events where companies can meet distributors and partners from across the globe.

Alan Pain, Head of Exports for the East of England at DIT, said:

There are growing opportunities for premium confectionery brands like Holdsworth Chocolates and Duncan’s of Deeside across the globe, particularly in Asia, where consumers are quickly developing a new appetite for dairy products. It’s rewarding to see businesses like Cocoda tapping into this potential.

Food and drink exports generated more than £22 billion of income for the UK in 2017, and this looks set to increase as growing numbers of consumers look for British-branded produce.

We have a team of International Trade Advisers located across the East of England alongside our calendar of events including opportunities to meet face-to-face with prospective buyers and build relationships. We urge local businesses of all sizes and sectors to come along as it’s a great opportunity to learn more about exporting and can lead to new contracts, as shown by Cocoda.