Bradford electronic components manufacturer Chase Advanced Technologies has made 18 workers redundant.

The company, based in Chase Way, Marshfields, says the decision is a direct result of losing between £2m to £3m worth of business with Pace Micro Technology.

Chase's contract to supply the Saltaire-based digital giant with 'sub assembly' units, the basis for Pace's digital TV set-top boxes, expired this week.

Chief executive Eugene Martinez said: "We started to suffer a decline in orders from Pace around the time of the announcement in May that it would be closing down its manufacturing facility in Shipley.

"We had to refocus and redeploy our workforce, and for the last two or three months we've managed to keep our heads above water and all our employees busy.

"But the Pace business totally ceased this week and, as a direct result, we have had to make production staff redundant."

Mr Martinez added that the redundancies had all been settled, and stressed that Chase's turnover for 2001 so far - recorded at £7.2 million to June - compared favourably to last year's £10.5 million.

The redundancies leave a workforce of around 240 at the firm, which doesn't anticipate any need for further job cuts.

"It will take a bit of time to fill the hole left by losing such a significant customer but we are hopeful we can manages,'' said Mr Martinez.

Pace Micro Technology announced in May of this year that 470 jobs were to be axed from its plant at Salts Mill.

The redundancies are set to take place on August 17 as the plant shuts at the end of that month.

The manufacturing site is to be moved overseas to ensure that it remains competitive and meets market expectations.

Pace has offices in Europe, Asia and America as well as manufacturing plants in Hungary, Mexico, the Czech Republic and China.