Marine services business charts course for growth with Glasgow expansion

A marine services company which provides specialist support to the offshore renewable industry has announced ambitious plans to expand its operation to Glasgow, having grown from a start-up to a business valued at £2.2m in just 11 months of trading.

Established in the North East of England in November 2012, Green Marine Solutions provides a suite of professional marine and specialist support services to the offshore renewable industry, from logistics, human resources and port management to the disposal of unexploded wartime mines.

Green Marine Solutions’ new office in Scottish Enterprise’s Inovo building, in the city’s new International Technology and Renewable Energy Zone (ITREZ), will initially create four new jobs when it opens this month.

The move will see the company join a growing cluster of renewable industry firms at the Merchant City site, which has been designed to support the development of the sector by enabling commercial organisations to work closely with academics at the University of Strathclyde’s soon to open Technology and Innovation Centre.

Having recently secured £450,000 in funding from Newcastle venture capital firm, Northstar, the company also hopes the new premises will eventually provide opportunities to develop a training division for graduates looking to enter the burgeoning Scottish renewable sector.

The announcement comes as Managing Director, former Master Mariner and Strathclyde Business School MBA alumnus Justin Moseley and fellow directors Richard Pargeter and Crispian Jones – who founded the business having cut their teeth coordinating the delivery of the Greater Gabbard Wind farm – toast a successful first year in which the company has seen turnover and profit treble.

Moseley credits his experience as a Merchant Seafarer and the strategic outlook he gained from his MBA studies, together with the continued support of Strathclyde Business School, the University of Strathclyde’s Entrepreneurial Network and Scottish Enterprise with Green Marine Solutions’ success to date.

He said:

“Our expansion into Glasgow marks the end of an incredibly intense and exciting year in which my fellow directors and I have worked tirelessly to establish Green Marine Solutions in the market. The new location positions the business to take full advantage of the opportunities the Scottish renewable sector offers, and plants the seed for future growth.

“Having spent the better part of twenty years at sea, piloting and servicing marine vessels of all types, I’ve learned how to be versatile and have applied this knowledge to developing a shoreside career in the marine and renewable sectors.

“But a career’s worth of operational knowledge would not have equipped me to take the plunge to start a new business venture, had it not been complemented by the strategic and leadership skills I learned while at Strathclyde Business School.

“Together with the support of Scottish Enterprise, the University of Strathclyde’s business expertise, entrepreneurial support and extensive industry links have also been critical in helping us deliver our ambitious growth plans. In fact, our Finance Director was recruited as a direct result of the links we forged though Strathclyde’s Enterprise Partner programme. Our new office location places us alongside the University campus and I’m looking forward to continuing to engage with Strathclyde and the business school.”

Green Marine Solutions, which already employs eight full-time staff, also plans to enter the lucrative management software market with its Real-time Offshore Asset Management (ROAM) programme, which was initially designed to boost efficiency in the construction of offshore Windfarms but has winder operational applications.

Susan Hart, Executive Dean of Strathclyde Business School, said:

“Some of the world’s leading business executives are MBA graduates and the success of Green Marine Solutions to date is another clear example of what can be achieved when management theory is applied in practice to a viable business plan.

“Justin and his fellow directors have demonstrated impressive leadership skills and strategy to develop a business which looks poised to become a significant operator in a sector which is set to play an important role in Scotland’s economic future.”

In the next month, Green Marine Solutions will also relocate its English operation to state-of-the-art new premises in Sunderland, which will provide a further base for development across the East of England and Scotland.

Adrian Gillespie, Managing director, Scottish Enterprise, said:

“Green Marine Solutions is an excellent example of a company that provides support services to businesses deploying offshore wind turbines which will make a major contribution towards government targets for renewable energy.

“The Inovo building at the International Technology and Renewable Energy Zone (ITREZ) at the university campus is quickly becoming home to companies across the renewable energy value chain, many of them choosing to locate there to engage with leading edge R&D at the University of Strathclyde, and to contribute to the renewable energy cluster at ITREZ.”

The announcement comes as the University of Strathclyde opens a new dedicated enterprise hub on its campus. The space is open to all Strathclyde students interested in enterprise and commercial opportunities and offers extensive services and facilities.