AN engineering company has taken on extra office and workshop space to accommodate a growing team as it heads for a £1.5m turnover in the next year.

Sealpump Engineering, a leading designer of industrial spraying systems, was the first tenant to move into UK Steel Enterprise’s (UKSE's) Innovation Centre on the Kirkleatham Business Park at Redcar in 2000.

It now occupies four times its original space, including two workshops, since taking over a Birmingham company, developed an innovative new spraying system for the food industry, and established a network of distributors that covers the USA, Canada, Poland, India, China and Chile.

The company was started by the late Tony Larkin in 1979 and has 36 years of technical expertise behind it.

Today, it is run by directors Stephen Larkin and Stuart Brown and its spraying systems are used by industries from steel, mining, chemicals and electronics to pharmaceuticals, automotive and paper. The company also supplies systems that control dust, odour and humidity.

From collecting gases and cooling steel to cleaning conveyor belts and coating food products the individually designed systems help companies that include Tata Steel, Weir LGE, Delifrance, Britvic, Cleveland Potash and SSI, to reduce costs, increase productivity and meet stringent environmental standards.

"Sadly my father died in 2006, just before the company reached its first £1m turnover, which had always been his main aim," said Stephen Larkin.

"He would have been extremely proud to see the growth and acquisitions that Sealpump has made since then. Everyone on the team is committed to continuing the company’s growth and, I know, does that with my Dad in mind."

Director Stuart Brown said: "Demand is growing particularly fast in India and the USA at the moment and we are working with a number of major household names in the food sector on systems to control humidity."

The company is now seeking a sales manager for its UK market and a seventh engineer. "Growth is good and Spray Direct, the company we bought three years ago, took us into a number of new sectors and is expected to double its turnover in the next two years," said Mr Brown.