Measuring up to the big boys

UK measurement specialist Millbrook Scientific claimed it has made the leap from small start-up to serious player in the emerging nanoscience sector after a year of strong growth.

The Blackburn-based company, which develops instruments for measuring the chemical, optical and mechanical properties of surfaces at the nanoscale, doubled in size last year and turned in a profit for the first time.

Part of the impetus behind Millbrook’s growth came from the acquisition of Micro Materials, a leading specialist in measuring the mechanical properties of ultra-thin films and coatings. The addition of Micro helped boost Millbrook’s turnover by a healthy 85 per cent to £1.6m in the year ending March.

The company also delivered its first pre-tax profit, £83,000 compared with a deficit of more than £160,000 a year earlier, and scooped a Queen’s Award for Exports along the way.

Chairman Dr Peter Stefanini claimed: ‘I feel that Millbrook has over the last year grown up from being a developing start-up to a business with genuine breadth and depth.’