Premier’s strong business performance and geographical expansion was recognised at tonight’s UK Construction News Specialist Awards when we were awarded  Highly Commended in the hotly contested Business Growth category.

We were the only company from Northern Ireland to receive an award.

The event, held at London’s Hilton on Park Lane, attracted more than 600 guests.

Mark Scullion, founder and MD, said this recognition at a UK-wide level was another building block in the company’s development.

“As a comparatively small team we have worked had to carve out new opportunities, especially in continental Europe and to have our success recognised by some of the top names in the UK’s construction industry is a tribute to everyone in the business.”

This is the third major award Premier has won in the past 12 months.

Premier is celebrating recognition of its strong business performance by the judges of a UK-wide competition.

We are delighted to reveal we have been shortlisted in the Business Growth category of this year’s Construction News Specialist Awards – one of the most prestigious sets of awards in the UK and Ireland.

We will be flying over to London to be interviewed by the panel of judges in mid-February and the winners will be announced in a gala ceremony in the Hilton Hotel, Park Lane in 25 March.

Premier founder and MD, Mark Scullion, said he was delighted the efforts of his team had been recognised on a UK-wide basis.

“We never ever take anything for granted at Premier, so to be independently judged as one of the top business growth companies within the UK’s construction sector is a major achievement.  To win would be amazing, given the recent successes we have enjoyed, but just to be in such esteemed company is a major result in itself.”

Premier Electrics (www.premierelectrics.com) has won another major award for its export growth.

The family-owned business won the International Award  category of the highly prestigious UTV Business Eye Awards in a glittering ceremony held at The Culloden Hotel and hosted by UTV’s Marc Mallett and Alison Fleming.

Premier which grew its turnover by 50% last year as a result of a strong focus on Europe was shortlisted alongside Norbrook and Wrightbus.

Mark Scullion, founder and MD of Premier, received the winner’s trophy from Dr Vicki Kell, Invest NI’s NI Trade Director.

The awards, now in their sixth year, attracted hundreds of entries from all over Northern Ireland and the panel of distinguished judges included UTV’s Business Correspondent, Jamie Delargy, Business Eye Editor, Richard Buckley, Irish News Business Editor, Gary McDonald and the Business Editor of The News Letter, Adrienne McGill.

The company was selected as the Exporter of the Year in this year’s Aer Lingus Viscount Awards in association with Ulster Business and South East Business Insider.  Managing Director, Mark Scullion was on hand to collect the prestigious award at a glittering ceremony held in London’s Corinthia Hotel.

This year for the first time, the Aer Lingus Viscount Awards were open to entries from companies in both Northern Ireland and the South of England.

The winners were chosen by a nine-strong panel comprising: Declan Kearney Director of Communications, Aer Lingus;  Symon Ross  Editor, Ulster Business; Michael Taylor Editorial Director, Insider;  Tracy Meharg  Managing Director, Innovation and Capability Group at Invest NI; Ann McGregor Chief Executive, Northern Ireland Chamber of Commerce;  Adrienne McGill Business Editor, News Letter;  Gary McDonald Business Editor, Irish News; Mervyn McCall Chairman, IoD in Northern Ireland;  Alan Taylor, Managing Partner, Arthur Cox.

Mark Scullion said he was thrilled to have Premier chosen as Northern Ireland’s premier exporter.

“The award is truly a testament to the dedication and commitment of all our team.”

The Aer Lingus Viscount Awards in association with Ulster Business and South East Business Insider are now in their fourth year. They were created to honour those companies who have forged vital economic ties between Northern Ireland and Britain.

Premier has seen strong export growth in recent years through our partnerships with major contractors and retailers. We are looking forward to the awards’ ceremony in London on 22 May.

Tony Shivers, Company Manager

The Bellaghy-based company was tasked with the electrical fit out of a wide range of energy reducing initiatives in the cutting edge store at Ecclesall Road which Marks & Spencer view as the future in retail design.

A specialist team from Premier installed a complete LED lighting system designed to reduce energy consumption, rain water harvesting, fridge case waste heating systems and solar panel installations to help feed back into the national electricity grid.

It is the first of a planned number of ‘Sustainable Learning Stores’ to be built by the retailer which are designed to build up M&S’s knowledge of sustainable construction.

The company plans to roll out a programme of in-store improvements that will cut carbon emissions, make stores more energy efficient and reduce electricity bills.

Eco-friendly features include wood certified to have come from renewable resources, bricks recovered from a former mill and polished concrete floors which need no additional covering.

Rainwater supplies the toilets and the store’s green ‘living wall,’ reducing water costs by up to 40 per cent compared with a similar sized store built using traditional methods and features.

Heat produced by the store’s refrigeration units will be used to keep the building warm, reducing CO2 emissions by 23 per cent and energy efficient LED lighting has been augmented by “sun pipes,” bringing natural light to the interior of the store.

In addition to the ‘living wall,’ the store has a sedum roof to insulate the building, filter pollution and create wildlife habitats. Bird boxes will be mounted on the perimeter of the site and there will be charging points for electric cars in the car parks as well as screens in the store, giving customers real time local transport information.

Even trolley and cycle shelters in the car park have been made from sustainable wood and covered with sedum roofs.

Sustainability is a specialised area for local firm Premier Electrics which has an established working relationship with Marks & Spencer.

Company Manager Tony Shivers said: “This is the latest in a number of contracts we have completed for Marks & Spencer stores, on this occasion working closely alongside Wates Retail, the main contractor for the project.

“Due to the bespoke technology of this store, a very flexible team was required, led by Project Manager, Liam Martin, with experts capable of solving problems as they arose but still able to complete the project to the standard expected and within the tight 10-week programme.

Established in 1993, Premier Electrics Ltd. is a specialist electrical contractor employing 150 people with specific expertise across the retail, leisure, industrial and commercial sectors.

Premier provides a comprehensive range of electrical installation and maintenance services to a formidable array of high-end clients across all of Britain, Ireland and Europe.

That extensive list includes such retail giants as M&S, Primark, Debenhams, ASDA, Tesco, Argos, Monsoon, Brown Thomas and the Virgin Group.

The brand new 60,000 square foot building will house 37,000 square foot of retail space as well as stock rooms and offices.

Premier Electrics will be responsible for the full design, supply and installation of the lighting, security, IT, fire alarm and tagging data systems in the new store.

Mechanical wiring will also be installed by our team.

In what will be our usual fast track turnaround, work which starts this month will be complete in just 16 weeks.

Leading local electrical contractor Premier Electrics will have to draw on its wealth of expertise and experience in precision planning to work within the strict security confines of the vibrant new athletes’ village.

Tight security around the village means that every screw nail has to be accounted for by contractors entering and leaving the site.

The Bellaghy-based firm has landed a contract to install and fit the electrics for one of its main clients Primark who are building a 54,000 square foot store in the heart of the village’s shopping district.

During the Games, the Athletes’ Village will comprise residential apartments for around 17,000 athletes and officials, along with shops, restaurants, medical, media and leisure facilities and large areas of open space.

Premier Electrics Project Manager for the new Primark store said: “We are delighted to have the chance to work on something as prestigious as the 2012 Olympic Village.

“It will certainly be an interesting scheme. The security is tighter than anything we have ever come across before.

“For anyone entering the site with a vehicle, we have to give 48 hours’ notice as well as registration details and information about the driver.

“All vehicles have to arrive one hour early so that everything can be X-rayed.

“It means we can’t order a box of screws without giving 48 hours’ notice so if we run out of something we can’t simply replace it.”

“Premier Electrics who specialise in fast track installations, went on site on April 4 in a scheme which they are programmed to finish by July.

Established in 1993, Premier Electrics Ltd. is a specialist electrical contractor employing 150 people with specific expertise across the retail, leisure, industrial and commercial sectors.

Premier provides a comprehensive range of electrical installation and maintenance services to a formidable array of high-end clients across all of Britain, Ireland and Europe.

That extensive list includes such retail giants as M&S, Primark, Debenhams, ASDA, Tesco, Argos, Monsoon, Brown Thomas and the Virgin Group.

A six man team started at 8pm working flat-out for 12 hours to strip out the old system in the 30,000 square foot store and install new state-of-the-art lighting, security, fire alarm and CCTV systems.

Shoppers remained oblivious to the major works being carried out as the highly professional Premier team left the store pristine for each day’s trading.

The huge project took just six weeks to complete and was delivered to a very satisfied client.

The same month, we delivered another more complex scheme to Penneys which will serve the company throughout Ireland and Europe.

Work began on July 12 on the installation of the electrics and lighting for a new warehouse and Distribution Centre in Naas.

The scheme also involved the installation of electrics for highly specialised lifting equipment.

The entire electrical and lighting installation for a new store in Bournemouth was completed within an incredibly tight 16 week timescale.

The massive 70,000 square foot story was set out over two storeys and had been stripped back to the bare shell for a major refurbishment.

It was delivered in November in time for pre Christmas opening.