THE HEAD of a Gunnislake factory said this week that he would look for a site in Plymouth for his factory if he does not get permission next month to expand his premises.

Alan Harper, managing director of Plastech, said he needed to have a larger factory operating by this time next year, which meant starting a search in Plymouth, his favoured alternative, unless he could convince Caradon District Council to accept his plans.

He said he and his staff wanted to stay in Gunnislake but moving to Plymouth could save him as much as £400,000.

'I would not lose any of my staff, but the new ones I would take on would probably come from the Plymouth area, not from Gunnislake,' he said.

The firm's application to expand at the Delaware Industrial Estate has been opposed by a group of local residents called Residents Against Industrial development (RAID).

The council's planning committee last week deferred a decision and asked for more detailed plans to be submitted on drainage, landscaping and building design. A petition with around 400 signatures objecting to the expansion was presented to the council.

The company makes technology and machinery for the glass fibre and composites industry serving manufacturers in aerospace, boat-building and racing cars. It has been trying for more than two years to get permission to take over a site next to its premises.

Plastech has a turnover of £1.4-million, employs 18 people and hopes to employ eight more if expansion is allowed, as well as helping to support many local suppliers.

The objectors say the development would damage the rural environment, cause noise, light and possibly chemical pollution and create traffic and drainage problems.

Mr Harper said he understood their concern for the environment but argued that the extension would not have the effects that they feared.