Amitex LED Lighting Co gets the green light for growth

A NORTHUMBERLAND lighting company has flicked the switch on a fresh cash injection after seeing sales rise 40% year on year.Amitex LED Lighting Co Ltd supplies a growing range of green, energy-efficient LED lighting products to some of the biggest electrical wholesalers in the UK from its Hexham base.At the end of 2011, the management team secured a ￡150,000 investment from the Finance For Business North East Growth Fund that is administered by fund management firm NEL Fund Managers to help with a drive into a number of new markets across the UK.Amitex LED has now broken into the North West, Scotland and Northern Ireland for the first time, and is establishing a strong new customer base in the Midlands.
To support the next phase of its development, the firm has received a planned second investment from the Growth Fund worth ￡100,000, which will be used to further enhance the company's product range and bring in more stock. The business, which was established in 2003, now works with most of the major names in the electrical wholesale industry, including CEF, QVS, Edmundsons and Kew Electrical.Managing director Alan Morton said: "It's still a difficult market out there, but we've achieved a great deal of success so far and this has been the result of a huge amount of hard work from every member of the team."The initial Growth Fund investment has helped us to quickly build up momentum over a matter on months."The Architect of the Capitol is replacing the roof on the Hart Senate Office Building, and as part of an effort to become more energy efficient, the AOC might look at installing solar panels.
Last year, the AOC diverted Congress' trash from landfills to a waste-to-energy facility; it is awaiting approval to use "cogeneration" to create heat and electricity simultaneously at the Capitol Power Plant.In that vein, the agency is "exploring options," according to spokeswoman Eva Malecki, regarding "installing more energy efficient and sustainable components as part of a planned roof replacement."The AOC has requested $11.3 million to replace the roof and fall protection systems of the building. The project would be overseen by an outside contractor. Some media reports suggested a contract would be awarded based on whether a company could incorporate solar panels or other sustainability components. Malecki, however, emphasized that with legislative branch offices fighting for scarce resources, the AOC would prioritize roof construction, with solar panels "purely conceptual at this time."