Commercial vehicle specialist to create new jobs with multi-million pound Leeds HQ

A firm specialising in safety systems for commercial vehicles has announced plans to expand its workforce alongside new multi-million pound Yorkshire headquarters.

Auto-engineering firm SM UK has confirmed it is investing £4m in a new 35,000 sq headquarters in Leeds as well as the creation of 30 new jobs.

Founded in 2000 by Steve MacDonald, SM UK specialises in the installation of safety features in commercial vehicles such as blind-spot cameras and internal racking systems.

The business has acquired the 1.4 acre former Winerite warehouse site on Gelderd Road in Leeds, with work currently underway to redevelop the property as an auto-engineering workshop ahead of its scheduled completion in June.

The planned 30 new hires will be for both engineering and office-based roles, and will take the workforce to around 100.

SM UK managing director, Steve MacDonald, commented: “We have continued to grow and to diversify the services we can offer our customers, and our HGV safety systems teams in particular have seen a rapid increase in demand.

“During the first lockdown it quickly became evident the transport industry would play a massive role in the pandemic and as a team we have been really proud to be on hand to support the fleets operating up and down the country.

“We’re now on the point of outgrowing our 10,000 sq ft Leeds facility, which we opened in 2018, and it’s exciting to be progressing the development of our new northern workshop and headquarters in the city, which will give us plenty of room to expand further.”

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