Scots plant to triple output on US deal

A COMPANY which uses Scottish technology to reduce electricity consumption in commercial buildings is to provide its products to public-sector organisations in the United States, in a move which will see it triple production capacity at its East Kilbride factory.

Active Energy, a joint venture between listed firm Cinpart and small Scottish engineering firm SDC Industries, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with County Executives of America, a group representing more than 700 council leaders in the country.

The agreement will pave the way for the firm's Voltage Master products to be supplied to thousands of US schools, hospitals and prisons.

Over two years the company will double its workforce to 60 in East Kilbride, where the products are made.

Chief executive Kevin Baker said: "With the support of County Executives, we now look forward to expanding on the initial interest generated in order to take advantage of the considerable opportunities available in the US."

It is understood the firm plans to open a second production facility in the US within the next six months.

Active Energy's product is a transformer which reduces the voltage entering a building from the UK standard electricity voltage of up to 240V to the lower standard EU level of 220V, lowering both electricity bills and carbon output.

In Cinpart's year-end results, published yesterday, the company reported that the Active Energy subsidiary had generated 1m of turnover in its first nine months of trading.

Contract wins since the year-end include a strategic partnership with Southern Electric Contracting, a wholly owned subsidiary of Scottish & Southern Energy, where Active Energy will become the "preferred supplier" of voltage optimisation technology.

Cinpart reported a loss for the 12 months to the end of December of 1.2m, in line with market expectations. The figure is around triple the deficit made by the firm in 2008, when it generated a loss of 338,241.