Cloud and managed services outfit Ultima is ploughing shedloads of cash into its Reading HQ.
The outfit has opened a new £18 million HQ in Reading and revealed plans to increase its staffing numbers and extend its apprenticeship scheme.
IT also wants to create 50 jobs and double the number of apprentices it takes on each year from the current level of 20 to 40.
Reading has always been one of the key areas for the tech industry, being part of the M4 corridor and the ‘golden triangle’, and the firm expects it to become even more important with the arrival of Crossrail.
Ultima founder Max McNeill said that it had invested heavily in the technology park that now homed its HQ with the aim of bringing tech firms and jobs to the area.
“With Crossrail coming to Reading I believe it’s a great opportunity for us to become a centre of technology excellence. Manor Park and over the past two years we have invested £18m in restoring the building from a shell into a 21st Century, state-of-the-art headquarters for Ultima in the heart of south Reading,” he said.
“We have rented out some of the 40,000sq ft to other technology companies, including Fortinet and Veeam who previously weren’t based in the town. It goes without saying that our investment in the business park has created further employment opportunities in south Reading, and will continue to do so,” he added.
The investment in bricks and mortar is more than just an opportunity to choose some new colour schemes and represents a deeper philosophy at Ultima.
“We are entering a period of rapid growth and our watchword for both our customers and staff is ‘modernisation’. Our new service offerings, and indeed our new office, are designed to deliver a range of refreshed IT solutions that address the latest business needs of IT users,” said Ultima CEO Scott Dodds.
