Cash helps turbine firm to modernise

A new funding package worth more than £450,000 is helping to underpin growth at a Dundee aero-engine and industrial turbines group.

ATL Turbine Services, based at Piper Street on the Baldovie Industrial Estate, is using the new financing package to update its old machinery with modern equipment.

The company has undergone a major transformation since its near-collapse in 2015, when a long-term order to supply parts for Tornado aircraft came to an end.

The loss resulted in more than 20 staff leaving the organisation and the factory moving to a four-day working week.

However, after a major restructuring ATL has been resurgent, with a raft of new contracts contributing to a more than 300% increase in export orders since 2016. New work has come from Germany, Canada, Japan, the Netherlands, Spain and Switzerland.

The growth has also allowed ATL to increase employee numbers from 58 to 72 in the past year, hiring a number of customer service, management, operations and workshop roles.

The company said it expected to create further jobs over the next 12 months as it looks to seize on opportunities both domestically and overseas.

“The finance from HSBC has enabled us to take the business from strength to strength, increasing our capacity, employee numbers and overall turnover,” ATL chief executive, Dale Harris, said.

“In doing so, we’ve started to futureproof the business and been able to ensure that skills are maintained in the local area.”

Susan Rowand, HSBC’S head of business banking in Scotland, added: “ATL’S success in recent years is commendable and a product of its commitment to customer service and maintaining and improving skills in Dundee. We look forward to ATL’S bright future.”

The finance was allocated from HSBC’S national £10 billion SME fund, £500 million of which is designated to support the growth of Scottish firms.

Dale Harris, chief executive of ATL.