Engineering group Stats plots global growth

STATS Group, the Aberdeenshire pipeline engineering specialist, will continue its expansion into overseas markets after securing a follow-on investment of £4.3 million from the Business Growth Fund (BGF).

Simon Munro, left, of the BGF and Pete Duguid of Stats Group. Picture: VisMedia

The company’s management team has also invested additional money in the business, which received an initial £7.8m of growth capital from BGF in March 2012.

That cash injection helped Stats double its annual turnover to around £30m, create 145 jobs and open operational bases in Canada, the Middle East and the United States.

The latest funding will fuel further expansion, particularly in the US, where the company opened a facility in 2014 and recently won contracts worth more than $15m (£10m) to provide services to a major energy infrastructure company.

It will also support growth in the Middle East, where Stats works with clients including ­national oil companies across the region.

Simon Munro, BGF regional director for Scotland, said that follow-on investments were an important part of the model of fund, which is backed by five of the UK’s main banks.

He said: “By supporting businesses that we know and have a proven track record, we can help them to grow even further.”

Peter Duguid, chief executive and co-founder of Stats, also highlighted the wider support BGF had provided.

He said: “They have not just injected cash into the business but have also offered advice and support during our global expansion.”

Duguid founded the Kintore-based firm in 1998 with his ­sister, Lorraine Porter.

It now employs 265 people and also has sites in Inverurie, Kendal, Canada, Malaysia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and the US. Last year, Stats invested £500,000 in opening a global training centre at its head office in Kintore, aimed at both maintaining and improving quality standards through in-house specialist training.

Recent work carried out by the group has included isolating the Forties pipeline system on behalf of Apache North Sea so that a valve could be safely installed.

• Meanwhile, an Aberdeen-based engineering company has announced plans to almost ­double its workforce after receiving significant funding ­support from Clydesdale Bank.

AFS Technologies specialises in small bore tubing assembly, and works predominantly with the oil and gas industry and ­associated sectors.

The company has received £2.8m in finance from Clydesdale to support the purchase of a custom-built office and workshop complex at the ABZ Business Park, adjacent to Aberdeen Airport.

AFS Technologies, founded in 1979, employs 44 staff and ­intends to increase that number to more than 80 during the next 12 months.

The job creation will support the company as it targets further growth opportunities in foreign markets, including Oman, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.

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