Exceptional growth for RTS

Citation

(2002), "Exceptional growth for RTS", Industrial Robot, Vol. 29 No. 4. https://doi.org/10.1108/ir.2002.04929dab.004

Exceptional growth for RTS

Exceptional growth for RTS

Keywords: RTS, Nuclear

RTS (Robot Technology Systems) has undergone a further expansion on its UK headquarters site near Manchester. It was only two years ago that office space was increased by 1,350m2 and now a new 4,800m2 building has been added, of which 2,450m2 is for offices and 2,350m2 for assembly and equipment testing facilities. The need for the expansion was fuelled by the rapid expansion of RTS's Nuclear and Life Science business groups in both the UK and USA. The resulting strong backlog meant RTS had outgrown its existing facilities.

The existing buildings are also being refurbished to match the new building and include the creation of a new headquarters. RTS was founded in Finland in 1996 and in 1998 acquired the automation and tooling business of Manchester-based Thurnall to form RTS Thurnall Limited. Last year the headquarters of the company were transferred from Finland to the original Thurnall site and business groups formulated in line with its major activities of nuclear, life sciences (laboratory automation) and flexible industrial systems.

In the last three years, the number employed by RTS in Manchester has increased from under 90 to over 260, while in the rest of the world, the figure has risen to over a 750, the vast majority being in the USA and approximately 50 in Finland.

Last year, RTS invented the concept of "TechnoGration" to describe the technology integration process at which it excels. Essentially, the company takes the best available technology and, after linking it together with advanced bespoke software, creates integrated automation solutions for its customers. In its last set of reported accounts, RTS achieved operating profits of £5.3 million on sales of £107.7 million.

Speaking at the official opening (Plate 4) of the new premises by the Mayor of Salford in March 2002, Phil Johnson, RTS's CEO, commented, "The quality of our products, coupled with the specialist expertise we offer across a broad range of industrial sectors, provides ample scope for our established pattern of sales growth to continue. We are currently quoted on the Alternative Investment Market (AIM) of the London Stock Exchange, but we have plans in place to move to the main market later this year".

The exceptional growth of RTS has been achieved through both strong organic performance and several strategic acquisitions. In May 2000 the reverse takeover of Wright Industries in the USA increased turnover by more than fourfold. In addition to bringing in the business of Wright in industrial systems and life sciences and the synergy with RTS's activities in these fields, the acquisition also gave the group a strong presence for its nuclear operation in the USA, where there is enormous potential in the nuclear clean-up programmes.

Plate 4 Official opening of the new RTS premises

Another important acquisition, in late 2000, was that of the 24-strong UK Robotics Limited, purchased from British Nuclear Fuels (BNFL). The robotics company was a component of the research and development facility supporting BNFL's operations and decommissioning activities as well as being a partner to industrial businesses by specialising in the development and commercial application of advanced robotics. Vision systems, sophisticated robotic controllers for up to 16 axes and remote handling equipment are just some of the "goodies" that UK Robotics brought to RTS.

The activities of RTS, and Thurnall before it, in the nuclear field go back over 25 years in the UK. It has developed expertise in nuclear waste management, decommissioning and the design of spent nuclear fuel handling and automated fuel manufacturing systems.

For decommissioning it designs and manufactures equipment for the removal and handling of equipment and materials that have been subject to contamination, as well as providing decontamination systems for cleaning specialist equipment used within the nuclear processing facilities such as telemanipulators. It also has its own range of telemanipulators with 18 models ranging in handling capacities from 5kg to 45kg. All are custom manufactured to individual client requirements and sealed models are available for installation in vacuum chambers or inert atmosphere enclosures.

For remote operation beyond the range and performance of mechanically coupled manipulators, RTS offers a servo-controlled model with force feedback. The slave is coupled to the master by a two-way communications link that exchanges command and status information with the master and allows the slave to be computer controlled.

RTS works in close partnerships with BNFL and has a permanent office at the company's Sellafield site in the UK manned by over 20 engineers. The partnership is now extending to the USA where RTS through its Wright subsidiary was able to win an order from BNFL Instruments Inc. a box assay chamber that included the design, build and delivery of the chamber to the advanced mixed waste treatment plant on the INEEL site at Idaho Falls. It was the first nuclear joint venture project to be undertaken since the acquisition of Wright Industries.

Another contract won in the USA because of the benefit of the local RTS Wright presence was to design and supply a range of specialised automated equipment for a nuclear waste clean-up project also in the state of Idaho. This multi-million dollar order from an international engineering and construction firm with 39,000 employees at work in more than 40 countries follows a smaller contract already won by RTS for the same project. The project is due to be completed in mid 2002.