While many firms are struggling in the financial downturn Limavady Gear Company - a heavy engineering and manufacturing firm - plans to add 10 staff to the 30-strong workforce and is moving to bigger premises. The company is also in the process of opening an associate office in Vancouver, Canada.

"We'd like to go international with the company, that's the idea," said managing director Richard Hogg.

Staff will leave their current Ballykelly site over the next few weeks and move to what was the former Seagate site on Dowland Road in Aghanloo.

"Seagate is a good modern building. There's plenty of room for expansion. The site has 180,000 square feet and we'll use about 50 or 60,000 square feet in the meantime for our ourselves," he said.
"That's one of the good things about having Dowland Road. It has an international feel to it anyway. It's a modern, new building and we want to try and 'green it' as much as we can."

Mr. Hogg also plans to create a Centre of Excellence for renewable energy at the site for entrepreneurs to develop ideas and is in talks with Invest NI and the University of Ulster.

"If someone has an idea, they can come here and carry it right through," he explained.

"I don't think that has been done before, where a centre is beside a full manufacturing plant. That should create a lot of buzz and employment out there," he said.

"That centre should create another 50 to 60 jobs at least. We are pushing to get that started before the end of the year."

Grand Designs
LGC had a massive boost last weekend when the company's Skyrota turbine helped power rock legends Bruce Springsteen and Tom Jones at the internationally famous Glastonbury festival.

The locally designed and built Skyrota turbine and generator system is designed to capture energy whichever way the wind blows. It means it doesn't lose energy when conditions vary.

"That's publicity money can't buy," said Mr. Hogg of the Glastonbury experience.

The Skyrota is also set to feature on the popular Channel Four programme 'Grand Designs' in the New Year after the featured homeowner bought one of the Skyrota turbines.