Trackwise increases production capacity as it buys new site at Stonehouse, Gloucestershire

By Nicky Godding

30 April 2021

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Trackwise Designs, the Tewkesbury-based printed circuit technology company, has bought a 77,000 sq ft freehold property at Stonehouse in Gloucestershire. The company has also appointed Steve Hudson as Chief Operating Officer.

The new site will enable Trackwise to significantly increase its production capacity to meet the expected demand for its Improved Harness Technology. In September 2020 the Company signed a Product Manufacture and Supply Agreement with an electric vehicle (EV) original equipment manufacturer and expects future orders from customers in its targeted medical, aerospace, EV and also other industrial markets.

Trackwise will install an automated roll-to-roll IHT production line at the site with the intention of it being operational in the fourth quarter of this calendar year. The site has capacity for the installation of a second line in the future.

The company has also has signed a multi-year agreement with CathPrint AB, the Stockholm-based company developing and manufacturing medical device products. CathPrint AB has developed CathPrint TechnologyÒ, a novel technology platform for the use of flexible printed circuit boards in advanced catheters. This Agreement is for the supply of Trackwise's IHT component parts for use in CathPrint's products. The use of IHT enables cost-efficient incorporation of electronic components within catheters, probes and tubing in contrast to today's typically handmade manufacturing.

Alongside Electric Vehicles and Aerospace, Medical is a key target market for Trackwise due to the weight and space saving properties of IHT alongside its reliability, functionality and ease of manufacture. The company continues to explore significant potential customer opportunities in this sector.

Philip Johnston, CEO of Trackwise, said: "The acquisition of the new site in Stonehouse marks another important strategic milestone in the Trackwise story. The additional capacity it affords us will underpin our growth plans across our target markets for the foreseeable future. Interest levels in IHT continue to grow across our target verticals, as today's announcement of our agreement with CathPrint AB illustrates, and we are excited about the future for our IHT technology.

"At the same time, I am delighted to welcome Steve to the fold. Trackwise has made remarkable operational progress in a short space of time and with the addition of a third site and plans to grow our team, the business is now at a stage where it will benefit from someone with Steve's expertise and knowhow."

Steve Hudson, new COO of Trackwise, said: "Trackwise is at the forefront of British manufacturing innovation and I am pleased to join at an exciting time in its development. I look forward to supporting Philip and the rest of our teams across our three sites, ensuring we have the strongest possible operational foundations from which to execute our strategy and realise our long-term growth ambitions."

By Nicky Godding

Nicky Godding is editor of The Business Magazine. Before her journalism career, she worked mainly in public relations moving into writing when she was invited to launch Retail Watch, a publication covering retail and real estate across Europe.

After some years of constant travelling, she tucked away her passport and concentrated on business writing, co-founding a successful regional business magazine. She has interviewed some of the UK’s most successful entrepreneurs who have built multi-million-pound businesses and reported on many science and technology firsts.

She reports on the region’s thriving business economy from start-ups, family businesses and multi-million-pound corporations, to the professionals that support their growth and the institutions that educate the next generation of business leaders.