Corporate Magazine - 2013, June (PDF) - Invest Northern Ireland

Investin June 2013 13Focus on ExportHealthybusinessin USTwo local companieshave secured significantbusiness in highlycompetitive US marketsafter taking part in arange of Invest NIsupport programmes.Exploristics, a Belfast companyspecialising in statistical and dataanalysis for life sciences, securedbusiness worth around £200,000following its participation with InvestNI at a recent Bio Business exhibitionin Boston. Sepha in Dundonaldsigned a £400,000 contract for itsmarket leading technology used in theinspection of blister packs and therecovery of product from faulty packs.Both Exploristics and Sepha haveused Invest NI trade missions andexhibitions to pinpoint and winexport business.Exploristics’ new contract will see itcarry out projects to support newdrug developments for the treatmentof serious medical conditions andhelp develop better models for theearlier diagnosis of pancreatic cancer.The company, which employs fivepeople in Belfast, also took part in ajoint Department of Health/Invest NIConnected Health mission to Boston.It is now being assisted by Invest NIto develop an innovative softwareprogramme to allow accuratepredictive modelling for clinical trials.Sepha has received a range of tradeand R&D support from Invest NI tohelp it grow sales in internationalmarkets and to develop itstechnologies, which are used mainlyin the pharmaceutical industry.The new contract is Sepha’s largestever single order to the US and hasbeen sold via its Chicago-baseddistributor. Sepha has grown turnoverby over 30 per cent per annum overthe past three years due to its exportand technology focus. The businesscurrently employs 32 people.Queen’s Awardfor ElmgroveFoodsElmgrove Foods, the Dungannonproducer and exporter of beef,lamb and pork offal products tocustomers across the world, haswon a prestigious Queen’sAward for Enterprise.The company gained the award in theInternational Trade category for asignificant increase in sales to countriesworldwide, where there is a tradition ofusing the whole animal.Elmgrove is a first time Queen’s Awardwinner. It has grown its overseasSuccess inEmiratesforshelvingand foodFour local companieshave won significantbusiness recently inthe United ArabEmirates andneighbouring Qatar.Sperrin Metal Storage Solutions, theDraperstown-based manufacturer ofshelving and other storage equipment,signed a contract worth around£300,000 during its participation withInvest NI at Arab Health, held in Dubaiin January.The family-owned company, whichcurrently employs 100, has asuccessful track record in the UAE,especially in Dubai. The new contractinvolves it installing a mobile shelvingsystem for archiving documents in aMinistry of the Interior building at Dohain Qatar. The company has used InvestNI trade missions over many years toexpand sales abroad.sales by 217 per cent over the lastthree years.Elmgrove’s research identified a specificglobal demand for innovative offalproducts – products that would not sellin the UK market. In four years thecompany both created and supplied aportfolio of more than 80 products intoSouth East Asian countries such asVietnam and Hong Kong, whichtogether comprise 82 per cent of totalsales turnover. It is now targeting Chinaas its next big market.>> Pictured is Dr Vicky Kell, Invest NI Trade Director, with PeterGormley, Managing Director of Sperrin Metal Storage SolutionInvest NI support has also helped threefood companies – Mash Direct,Comber, Ewings Seafood, Belfast andGlenarm Organic Salmon – to gainfirst-time business in Dubai.Mash Direct, a manufacturer of potatoand vegetable convenience foods, isnow supplying Spinneys, the MiddleEast’s premium supermarket chain. Theorder was secured after the companyteamed up with Invest NI to attend theSIAL food exhibition in Paris.Glenarm Organic Salmon in Co Antrim,Northern Ireland’s only salmon farm,won business with a leading distributioncompany in Dubai to supply majorhotels and high-end restaurants. Thatfollowed its participation last year on anInvest NI mission to the Emirates forlocal seafood processors.Organic salmon from Glenarm was alsoused by Ewing’s Seafoods to win its firstbusiness in Dubai. The company’s newsmoked salmon product was developedwith assistance from Invest NI.