News: Inspiration Healthcare relocation

Inspiration Healthcare Limited is set to close its Rotherham facility, a year and a half after the reverse takeover by Manvers-based Inditherm was announced.

The AIM-listed firm has announced that it moving its corporate headquarters from Rotherham to a new 4,500 sq ft head office and R&D centre in Crawley.

Inditherm has developed products using low voltage carbon polymer technology to provide heat. Its systems are used for patients undergoing operations which carry risk of inadvertent hypothermia and in neonatal wards.

Inspiration was founded in Leicestershire in 2003 as a medical device distribution company focused on innovative products for critical care.

The 2015, £7.2m reverse takeover came after Inditherm directors identified the need to make the business part of a larger entity, thereby allowing the medical business to grow with fewer constraints.

For the six months to July 31 2016, the new firm had a growth in sales on a proforma basis by 10% to £7.1m compared to the same period in the previous year. International sales were up 19% with growth in the Americas and Europe.

The profit after tax was £361k, up from the £504k loss reported as the takeover was concluded in 2015.

Inspiration Healthcare said that the decision to relocate came as "a result of a strategic review and in a move to streamline business and continue supporting corporate growth."

In a statement the company said: "This decision will result in the simplification of the company's operations including the closure of its factory in Rotherham, enabling Inspiration Healthcare to focus on its core business, and move with greater flexibility and impetus on growth.

"By re-structuring our operations, Inspiration Healthcare is streamlining the organisation allowing us to improve our service and accelerate growth."

Formed in 1998, Inditherm floated on the London Stock Exchange (AIM) in December 2001, raising £3.4m to fund the expansion of the business. In July 2002 it relocated to new premises on the Houndhill Business Park in Manvers which enabled rapid expansion of manufacturing facilities.

The company applied its technology in a number of areas with limited commercial success, including under pitch heating and industrial processes. A decision was taken in 2010 to focus on the medical sector.

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News: Solid start for Inspiration Healthcare

The healthcare group created when Rotherham company, Inditherm completed the acquisition of Inspiration Healthcare Limited in a reverse takeover, has reported an increase in sales and a solid start to the year.

Manvers-based Inditherm has developed products using low voltage carbon polymer technology to provide heat. Its systems are used for patients undergoing operations which carry risk of inadvertent hypothermia and in neonatal wards.

Inspiration was founded in Leicestershire in 2003 as a medical device distribution company focused on innovative products for critical care.

Reporting its financial results for the six months to July 31 2016, the AIM-listed firm had a growth in sales on a proforma basis by 10% to £7.1m compared to the same period in the previous year. International sales were up 19% with growth in the Americas and Europe.

The profit after tax was £361k, up from the £504k loss reported as the takeover was concluded in 2015.

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The £7.2m reverse takeover came after Inditherm directors identified the need to make the business part of a larger entity, thereby allowing the medical business to grow with fewer constraints.

The latest results showed that operating room sales for the Inditherm Alpha range of perioperative patient warming systems showed an expected decline during a "difficult first half year."

The management team has identified and prioritised plans to improve the product in the short term as well as streamline the product offering and its promotion via a new sales team in the UK.

Spend on R&D is set to increase in the second half of the year with the board stating that there is untapped potential with the Inditherm Alpha system and the LifeStart system which facilitates the delaying of the clamping and cutting of the umbilical cord following childbirth by providing resuscitation at a newborn baby's bedside.

The company continues to support academics wishing to study the benefits that its products may bring. LifeStart is being used on studies both in Ireland and the United States of America and "interest in the LifeStart at the Paediatric Academic Society meeting (Baltimore) shows the concept of the product has great potential."

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News: Healthcare merger an inspiration

The healthcare group created when Rotherham company, Inditherm completed the acquisition of Inspiration Healthcare Limited in a reverse takeover is reporting that pre-tax profits are ahead of forecasts.

Manvers-based Inditherm has developed products using low voltage carbon polymer technology to provide heat. Its systems are used for patients undergoing operations which carry risk of inadvertent hypothermia and in neonatal wards.

Inspiration was founded in Leicestershire in 2003 as a medical device distribution company focused on innovative products for critical care.

The £7.2m deal, which completed last year, was announced after AIM-listed Inditherm completed a review of strategic options with the objective of creating shareholder value. Directors identified the need to make the business part of a larger entity, thereby allowing the medical business to grow with fewer constraints.

In an update to the stock exchange, Inspiration Healthcare Group said that it expects to report revenue for the year ended January 31 in line with market forecasts and profit before tax ahead of forecasts due to improved trading margins and deferred R&D expenditure.

It added "Since completion of the reverse takeover in June 2015, management has focused on re-engineering the business from two entities into a single supplier of Critical Care and Operating Room products. Part of the re-engineering has involved integrating the sales teams and the routes to market in the UK. Overseas, distribution options have been reviewed to ensure the Group has effective channels for the Group's products worldwide."

For the half year to July 31 2015, adjusted figures showed that the consolidated Group was showing healthy growth in revenue of 17% and an underlying return on sales of 8%. Revenue for the six months was £5.6m compared to £4.5m in the same period in 2014.

The group is set to launch innovative new products focused on the neonatal space.

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News: Inspiration Healthcare's strong foundations for growth

The Inspiration Healthcare Group plc has reported its first financial results since it was created when Rotherham company, Inditherm completed the acquisition of Inspiration Healthcare Limited in a reverse takeover.

Manvers-based Inditherm has developed products using low voltage carbon polymer technology to provide heat. Its systems are used for patients undergoing operations which carry risk of inadvertent hypothermia and in neonatal wards.

Inspiration was founded in Leicestershire in 2003 as a medical device distribution company focused on innovative products for critical care.

The £7.2m deal, which completed in June, was announced after AIM-listed Inditherm completed a review of strategic options with the objective of creating shareholder value. Directors identified the need to make the business part of a larger entity, thereby allowing the medical business to grow with fewer constraints.

The board said that since completion of the transaction, restructuring plans are being implemented to improve market focus and deliver the benefits of the combined businesses. They added that progress is encouraging and the process is expected to be completed by the end of the financial year.

For the half year to July 31 2015 the adjusted figures showed that the consolidated Group is showing healthy growth in revenue of 17% and an underlying return on sales of 8%. Revenue for the six months was £5.6m compared to £4.5m in the same period in 2014. The operating profit for the period before exceptional items was £713k, compared to £295k in 2014, and after exceptional items £108k (2014 was £295k). The figures included the elimination of losses of Inditherm plc prior to the reverse takeover.

Cash generated is set to allow continued investment in R&D for innovative new products which will be launched over the next 12 months. These new products are focused on the neonatal space.

Mark Abrahams, chairman of Inspiration Healthcare Group plc, said: "The reverse takeover has brought a scale to the company which will allow us to build on a platform that reaches into areas of critical care in more than 50 countries around the world. This scale will allow us to leverage relationships with distribution partners overseas, create a critical mass in the UK with a larger sales team and allow us to invest further in marketing and R&D for future products.

"The new group will concentrate on three main areas of business, the largest being Critical Care incorporating neonatal intensive care, paediatric intensive care and adult intensive care, the second being Operating Room and the third being Other products which include distributed products for infusion therapy as well as our historic industrial sales.

"It is also pleasing to report that all of our key customers, principals and suppliers have viewed the transaction as positive and have expressed a desire to continue to work with the enlarged group."

"The fully integrated business will have a strong foundation for growth in 2016."

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News: Inditherm completes reverse takeover

Innovative Rotherham company, Inditherm, has completed the acquisition of Inspiration Healthcare Limited, a deal which is set to allow the medical business to grow with fewer constraints.

Manvers-based Inditherm has developed products using low voltage carbon polymer technology to provide heat. Its systems are used for patients undergoing operations which carry risk of inadvertent hypothermia and in neonatal wards.

Inspiration was founded in Leicestershire in 2003 as a medical device distribution company focused on innovative products for critical care.

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The £7.2m deal was announced last month after Inditherm completed a review of strategic options with the objective of creating shareholder value. Directors identified the need to make the business part of a larger entity, thereby allowing the medical business to grow with fewer constraints.

AIM-listed Inditherm shifted its focus to the medical market and scored sizeable NHS contracts in 2013 but revenue in 2014 reduced by 10% compared to 2013 to £1.8m and this resulted in an operating loss of £356k.

Uncertainties in the NHS resulted in the performance with Inditherm believing that the apparent slowing of growth is caused in the UK by ever-tightening financial constraints, particularly with regard to capital expenditure in the NHS, rather than a dampening of enthusiasm for its products. A trend that is set to continue.

Inspiration holds a number of distribution agreements and also has a range of own-branded products focused on critical care which are sold in over 40 countries. In the year ended January 31 2015, it recorded revenue of £9.5m, with adjusted earnings of £800k.

The acquisition, considered a reverse takeover, was approved at a general meeting this week. Inditherm has acquired the entire issued share capital of Inspiration with the vendors receiving 83.3% of the share capital with the new, enlarged group readmitted to the stock market. The acquisition values the issued share capital of Inspiration at £7.2m.

Trading in the company's shares on AIM is now under the new name of Inspiration Healthcare Group plc.

Neil Campbell, chief executive officer of Inspiration Healthcare Group plc, said: "The acquisition represents value for both Inditherm and Inspiration Healthcare, creating a company with a diverse product portfolio that will allow us to compete more effectively in a global market. We will continue to invest in developing innovative products and look forward to utilising the resources of an enlarged company to continue our growth."

The company's share price has increased by 70% since the deal was announced.

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News: Inditherm secure NHS neonatal contract

Rotherham-based Inditherm has secured an order for nine of its innovative LifeStart neonatal resuscitation units at a new Specialist Emergency Care Hospital in Northumbria.

Manvers-based Inditherm has developed products using low voltage carbon polymer technology to provide heat. Its systems are used for patients undergoing operations which carry risk of inadvertent hypothermia and in neonatal wards.

Launched by Inditherm at the 2013 Arab Health exhibition, LifeStart facilitates the delaying of the clamping and cutting of the umbilical cord following childbirth by providing resuscitation at a newborn baby's bedside.

A significant amount of clinical research has highlighted the benefits of delayed cord clamping (DCC) for a newborn baby but traditional resuscitation units are not suitable for use at the delivery bedside, thus requiring the umbilical cord to be cut to allow the baby to be treated.

Designed with guidance from a team of obstetricians and paediatricians, Inditherm's system has a compact design enabling it to deliver all the required functions close enough to the mother to permit the umbilical cord to be left intact for the critical first few minutes.

The new Northumbria Specialist Emergency Care Hospital (NSECH) in Cramlington, is set to open this month. Existing maternity services are being transferred from Wansbeck Hospital where senior clinical staff have already implemented the practice of delayed cord clamping wherever possible.

Following an evaluation of Inditherm's LifeStart system in the existing maternity unit, the team opted to equip all the high risk delivery rooms with new LifeStart systems, providing the best state-of-the-art facilities in this pioneering new specialist hospital.

DCC allows the new-born infant to continue to benefit from the continued supply of oxygenated placental blood until spontaneous breathing is established. This placental transfusion can account for 30% of the new-born's blood volume.

The National Institute for Health & Care Excellence (NICE) recently updated its evidence-based advice on the care of women and their babies during labour and immediately after the birth which backs the use of the Inditherm system.

Other UK and US hospitals have equipped some of their delivery rooms with LifeStart but the Northumbria hospital is the first in the world to equip with LifeStart on this scale. The £90m development is run by Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust and is the first purpose-built hospital of its kind in England.

Nick Bettles, chief executive at Inditherm, said: "In choosing LifeStart, NSECH are setting a new benchmark for maternity and neonatal care. We are very pleased that the trust recognises that resuscitation with the cord intact is now possible using the LifeStart system. We hope that as other centres see that LifeStart makes DCC practical for all patients, particularly those most at risk, they will follow the lead being set here.

"There is little doubt, given all the evidence of the benefits of delayed cord clamping, this gives the highest standard of care possible."

AIM-listed Inditherm is proposing the acquisition of Inspiration Healthcare Limited, a privately owned global medical device distribution company, allowing the medical business to grow with fewer constraints. The proposals are set to be approved at the company's general on June 23.

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News: Inditherm to scale up with £7.2m reverse acquisition

Innovative Rotherham company, Inditherm, is proposing the acquisition of Inspiration Healthcare Limited, a privately owned global medical device distribution company, allowing the medical business to grow with fewer constraints.

Manvers-based Inditherm has developed products using low voltage carbon polymer technology to provide heat. Its systems are used for patients undergoing operations which carry risk of inadvertent hypothermia and in neonatal wards.

Inspiration was founded in Leicestershire in 2003 as a medical device distribution company focused on innovative products for critical care. It holds a number of distribution agreements and also has a range of own-branded products focused on critical care which are sold in over 40 countries. In the year ended January 31 2015, Inspiration recorded revenue of £9.5m, with adjusted earnings of £800k.

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AIM-listed Inditherm shifted its focus to the medical market and scored sizeable NHS contracts in 2013 but revenue in 2014 reduced by 10% compared to 2013 to £1.8m and this resulted in an operating loss of £356k.

Uncertainties in the NHS resulted in the performance with Inditherm believing that the apparent slowing of growth is caused in the UK by ever-tightening financial constraints, particularly with regard to capital expenditure in the NHS, rather than a dampening of enthusiasm for its products. A trend that is set to continue.

In a report to the stock exchange Indtherm said: "The company's lack of scale has meant that the level of overheads has prevented profitable trading in any full year. The overheads include, inter alia, costs associated with the public company status, management costs and development costs.

"Accordingly, the Inditherm directors identified the need to make the business part of a larger entity, thereby allowing the medical business to grow with fewer constraints. As a result, in September 2014 the company announced that it was reviewing strategic options with the objective of creating shareholder value.

"The Inditherm directors have reviewed many potential options, most of which have now been eliminated. Of those remaining, the Inditherm directors are of the opinion that the proposed Acquisition is substantially the most attractive with regard to potential shareholder value."

Considered a reverse takeover, Inditherm would acquire the entire issued share capital of Inspiration with the vendors receiving 83.3% of the share capital when the new, enlarged group is readmitted to the stock market. The acquisition values the issued share capital of Inspiration at £7.2m.

A proposed new board would see Mark Abrahams, chairman of Inditherm, become non-executive chairman of the new group, which is set to see Inditherm renamed Inspiration Healthcare Group plc. Nick Bettles, who joined Inditherm in 2004, is set to stand down as chief executive of the company.

The new group is set to strengthen its market position in the UK and overseas through organic growth, new distribution arrangements and introducing new own-branded products. The group will also be in a position to offer more products to distributors, gaining economies of scale and competitive advantages.

Mark Abrahams, chairman of Inditherm, said: "We have believed for some time that there is underlying value in Inditherm, but the combination of small scale and overhead costs have been a constraint. This transaction has the potential to unlock shareholder value and represents an excellent outcome to our review of strategic options which we have undertaken over the last year."

The proposals are set to be approved at the company's general meeting in June.

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News: Inditherm hoping for another NICE boost

AIM-listed Rotherham company, Inditherm, will be hoping for a boost in interest for its innovative medical products after receiving further backing from the National Institute for Health & Care Excellence (NICE).

Manvers-based Inditherm has developed products using low voltage carbon polymer technology to provide heat. Its systems are used for patients undergoing operations which carry risk of inadvertent hypothermia and in neonatal wards.

NICE is recognised as being a world leader in setting standards for high quality healthcare and are the most prolific producer of clinical guidelines in the world. It has previously published guidance advising that the Inditherm patient warming mattress should be considered for use in patients at risk of inadvertent hypothermia.

The support from NICE, and the cost savings from replacing forced-air systems with Inditherm products, has attracted attention from the NHS and around the world.

Now NICE has updated its evidence-based advice on the care of women and their babies during labour and immediately after the birth which backs the use of another innovative system, the "LifeStart" system. Launched by Inditherm at the 2013 Arab Health exhibition, LifeStart facilitates the delaying of the clamping and cutting of the umbilical cord following childbirth by providing resuscitation at a newborn baby's bedside.

A significant amount of clinical research has highlighted the benefits of delayed cord clamping (DCC) for a newborn baby but traditional resuscitation units are not suitable for use at the delivery bedside, thus requiring the umbilical cord to be cut to allow the baby to be treated.

Designed with guidance from a team of obstetricians and paediatricians, Inditherm's system has a compact design enabling it to deliver all the required functions close enough to the mother to permit the umbilical cord to be left intact for the critical first few minutes.

NICE's latest guideline indicates not to "clamp the cord earlier than one minute from the birth of the baby unless there is concern about the integrity of the cord or the baby has a heartbeat below 60 beats/minute that is not getting faster." The World Health Organisation sets a minimum one minute delay but a target of at least three minutes.

Inditherm points to a significant and growing body of evidence that immediate clamping of the cord is associated with complications for the new-born baby including anaemia, hypovolaemia, cardio-respiratory complications and late onset sepsis amongst others. There is also some evidence of longer term effects including an increase in cognitive and behavioural problems such as autism and ADHD.

A large multi-centre UK trial is underway to further strengthen the evidence base surrounding the clinical findings to date.

Nick Bettles, chief executive at Inditherm (pictured, right showing The Duke of Gloucester the system in production), said: "Delayed cord clamping is widely held to be of significant benefit to the new baby, even more so if the baby is premature. However there has been a perceived dilemma between letting nature sustain the baby during the transition period and administering advanced resuscitation techniques which require removal of the baby from the mother to the medical equipment used.

"Inditherm's LifeStart system supports the implementation of these new NICE Guidelines as it allows the baby to receive urgent care with the cord still intact and within the first few minutes of life. We are completely convinced of the clinical benefits shown by the existing research and hope that the new NICE guidance will drive wider uptake of the practice in the NHS.

"Inditherm was delighted to have been chosen as the commercial partner by the UK clinical teams who developed the concept of bedside resuscitation. We are proud to be innovating yet again and having a product designed and manufactured in Britain leading the way."

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News: Inditherm success in chemotherapy care

Innovative medical products from Rotherham company, Inditherm, are being adopted by a growing number of NHS hospitals to improve the quality of the care provided for chemotherapy patients.

Manvers-based Inditherm has developed products using low voltage carbon polymer technology to provide heat. Its systems are used for patients undergoing operations which carry risk of inadvertent hypothermia and in neonatal wards.

Around 150 of its SpeedHeatVE systems are now being used daily in over 20 chemotherapy units in the UK, where the localised warming helps to help raise veins to facilitate chemotherapy treatment and other intravenous therapies. This not only assists the healthcare professional by speeding the process, but also makes it a less unpleasant experience for the patient. The administration of chemotherapy drugs is often very painful and heat has been shown to reduce levels of pain significantly.

In many hospitals various warming methods have been used, ranging from placing the patient's arm in a bucket of warm water to the use of microwave heat packs. These methods are more than a little haphazard, none can provide a controlled temperature whilst all present a challenge for infection control.

Inditherm's patented technology provides a completely uniform conductive heating surface, which is extremely flexible and is powered at low voltage. In this application it is used in re-usable soft-feel heat pads connected to a simple control unit that provides precise temperature regulation that can be adjusted as appropriate for each patient and each phase of treatment. SpeedHeatVE is the only approved medical device for this purpose available worldwide and the polymer heat pads are also used to accelerate muscle injury treatment by enabling controlled heat to be applied directly to muscles, ligaments, tendons and joints.

Nick Bettles, chief executive at Inditherm, said: "It is good to see that the performance of our SpeedHeatVE product has been appreciated by the clinical users, and also to know that it can have such a benefit for patients.  We adapted our physiotherapy product for this application specifically to ensure that we could meet the infection control demands. We're pleased to know that we can offer a safe and effective alternative to the somewhat primitive warming methods some hospitals had previously been forced to adopt.

"We believe that as SpeedHeatVE is now becoming well established and more widely recognised many other chemotherapy units will start to adopt our very much more suitable, safe and convenient localised warming technology."

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News: Inditherm looks abroad as NHS slowdown hits profits

Innovative Rotherham company, Inditherm, has reported a loss in the first half of the financial year with a significant fall in orders in the UK medical market.

Manvers-based Inditherm has developed products using low voltage carbon polymer technology to provide heat. Its systems are used for patients undergoing operations which carry risk of inadvertent hypothermia and in neonatal wards.

In the six months ended June 30 2014, the AIM-listed firm reported that revenue was similar to the same period in 2013 - £998k compared to £1m - but ultimately Inditherm posted a loss of £173k, compared to a profit of £4k in the same period last year.

Trading levels in the Medical business in the first half of 2014 were down 20% on the same period in 2013, without the previous year's benefit of large NHS orders and projects carried over from 2012.

Many forward thinking NHS Trusts in England have adopted the technology but financial pressures and uncertainties in the sector has slowed Inditherm's penetration.

Case studies show that Inditherm products can help prevent perioperative hypothermia and in turn reduce infection rates, use of blood products, recovery times and mortality. They also show that Trusts can make substantial cost savings whilst maintaining, or in some cases improving, patient care. The NHS in England alone could save an estimated £15m per annum if forced air warming was replaced by Inditherm's mattress for eligible procedures in most of the 3,030 operating theatres.

In a report to the stock exhnage, Inditherm said: "We have not enjoyed the benefit of the more substantial projects seen in 2013, including some delayed from 2012, and as a consequence our UK Medical orders fell significantly. UK Medical sales, excluding ATOM [Japanese incubator products sold by Inditherm], represented 41% of our Medical business (2013: 64%). This reflects continuing uncertainty in the NHS, particularly characterised by severe constraints on capital budgets, but with interest in our products sustained and prospects at a similar level to last year."

Last year, the firm decided to support the development of the export markets, with extra focus and direction applied towards territories with the greatest potential. With extra resources, encouraging sales growth has been seen in the Medical export business in the first half of 2014, up 30% on the same period last year. "This has been underpinned by stronger performance in the Asia-Pacific region, including start-up stocks for a partner in Japan who will promote our operating room products under their own brand. Our increased resources in this area are adding focus to our export activities; we have taken steps to start identifying partners for the Latin America markets and to look for ways to strengthen our presence where we have underperforming distribution channels."

Mark Abrahams, chairman of Inditherm, said: "Whilst the performance of the first half has been disappointing, albeit expected, we can now see a slowly improving trend in customer enquiries. Given the increased conversion times and the change in business mix towards export, it is likely that gross margins will remain at a healthy but lower level than last year. This will inevitably defer our ability to deliver profitable growth.

"Accordingly, we are stepping up our efforts to identify strategic options capable of accelerating our prospects of delivering shareholder value."

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News: Inditherm target Latin American market

AIM-listed Rotherham company, Inditherm, is looking to expand into Latin America and recently attended a major trade fair with the aim of finding distributors for its innovative medical products.

Manvers-based Inditherm has developed products using low voltage carbon polymer technology to provide heat. Its systems are used for patients undergoing operations which carry risk of inadvertent hypothermia and in neonatal wards.

Company representatives recently attended FIME, the Florida International Medical Exposition, for the very first time. Attracting over 50,000 visitors, the trade fair enables medical equipment professionals to showcase a diverse range of capital equipment, accessories and services.

The move comes after growth in export orders for the medical business was not seen in 2013. Resources for export activities were increased during the year and Inditherm believe that this will allow them to increase focus in this area of the business and drive progress with overseas distribution channels. Action has been taken following some disappointing performances from some distributors and some encouraging signs were seen at the start of 2014.

Inditherm showcased its Alpha perioperative patient warming system that is used in operating theatres, intensive care units and during the pre-operative period. Well over 6,000,000 patients worldwide have now been warmed by the system.

In the UK, NICE, a world leader in setting standards for high quality healthcare, published guidance in 2011 advising that the Inditherm patient warming mattress should be considered for use in patients at risk of inadvertent hypothermia. The NHS in England alone could save over £15m per annum if forced air warming was replaced by Inditherm's mattress for eligible procedures in most of the 3,030 operating theatres.

Also on show in Miami was CosyTherm, which uses the low voltage carbon polymer technology to help prevent hypothermia in new born babies. The systems are already highly popular in the UK and used in almost half of all NHS neonatal units, with that number still growing. The product is also gaining increased international recognition, with users in over 30 countries world-wide.

LifeStart, a new system launched at the 2013 Arab Health exhibition was also featured by Inditherm. A world first, the system facilitates the delaying of the clamping and cutting of the umbilical cord following childbirth by providing resuscitation at a newborn baby's bedside.

Nick Bettles, CEO at Inditherm, said: "Our attendance at FIME 2014 underlines our commitment to develop our distributor network as we work to drive forward our export sales. We firmly believe that the Latin American markets have the capability to deliver real growth and progress for Inditherm.

"We made over 50 contacts at the show, including distributors covering more than 15 Latin American countries. A number of these are very promising potential partners and we will be pursuing those opportunities over the coming months."

For the 12 months ended December 31 2013, Inditherm reported that turnover increased by 23% to just over £2m compared to £1.6m in 2012 and gross profit rose to £1.1m, up by 21% on the £960k in 2012.

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News: Inditherm appoint new distributors

AIM-listed Rotherham company, Inditherm, has appointed new distributors in Scotland, Ireland and Mexico for its innovative medical products.

Manvers-based Inditherm has developed products using low voltage carbon polymer technology to provide heat. Its systems are used for patients undergoing operations which carry risk of inadvertent hypothermia and in neonatal wards.

Although it did not experience growth in export orders for the medical business in 2013, resources for export activities were increased during the year and the board believe that this will allow them to increase focus in this area of the business and drive progress with overseas distribution channels. Action was also taken to address disappointing performances from some distributors.

In Scotland, Glasgow-based Iona Surgical will be looking to develop the new opportunities presented by the inclusion of Inditherm perioperative patient warming systems in the new NHS Scotland framework agreement.

Many forward thinking NHS Trusts in England have adopted the technology but financial pressures and uncertainties in the sector has slowed Inditherm's penetration.

Case studies show that Inditherm products can help prevent perioperative hypothermia and in turn reduce infection rates, use of blood products, recovery times and mortality. They also show that Trusts can make substantial cost savings whilst maintaining, or in some cases improving, patient care. The NHS in England alone could save an estimated £15m per annum if forced air warming was replaced by Inditherm's mattress for eligible procedures in most of the 3,030 operating theatres.

Operating Room Systems has now been appointed to cover the Republic of Ireland, following its rapid progress in establishing Inditherm's operating theatre and neonatal product ranges in Northern Ireland.

In Mexico, newly-appointed Inditherm distributor SBH has offices in Mexico City, Guadalajara and Monterrey, giving it excellent national coverage.

Nick Bettles, CEO at Inditherm, said: "These appointments underline our commitment to strengthen our distributor network and restore historic export growth levels. We believe all three of these new partners have the capability to deliver good sales progress and market penetration in their regions and we have the highest hopes and expectations for the prospects offered by all of them."

Inditherm reported a 23% rise in its turnover to £2.1m for the year to 31 December 2013 – up from £1.7m in the previous year. Pre-tax losses fell from £176,000 to £93,000.

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News: Inditherm systems approved for sale in South Korea

Another export market is set to open up for Rotherham-based Inditherm after its innovative patent warming systems were approved by the medical device authorities in South Korea.

Manvers-based Inditherm has developed products using low voltage carbon polymer technology to provide heat. Its systems are used for patients undergoing operations which carry risk of inadvertent hypothermia and in neonatal wards.

Inditherm and their distribution partners, YK Medical, will now commence promotion of the products following a lengthy Korean Food and Drug Administration (KFDA) and Korean Good Manufacturing Practice (KGMP) ratification process.

Nick Bettles, chief executive at Inditherm, said: "It is good to have the registration complete after such a demanding and exhaustive process and to have distribution already in place to exploit this opportunity. YK Medical, with their enthusiasm, commitment and well-established sales network, are well placed to provide effective market penetration."

In releasing its financial results for the year ended December 31 2013, the AIM-listed firm said that, although it did not experience growth in export orders for the medical business in 2013, resource for export activities were increased during the year and the board believe that this will allow them to increase focus in this area of the business and drive progress with overseas distribution channels. Action has been taken following some disappointing performances from some distributors and some encouraging signs have been seen at the start of 2014.

Inditherm Medical recently hosted a conference for their international distributors. Held in Prague, historic capital of the Czech Republic, the meeting was attended by over 30 delegates representing 17 countries from as far away as Australia, Malaysia, Hong Kong and Mexico.

The conference allowed Inditherm to launch new product features, discuss potential new products, give training, gain market feedback and enhance distributor awareness and motivation.

Products include the Inditherm Alpha system that is used in operating theatres, intensive care units and during the pre-operative period; the CosyCrib advanced neonatal crib and treatment unit; and LifeStart, a new system launched at the 2013 Arab Health exhibition that facilitates the delaying of the clamping and cutting of the umbilical cord following childbirth by providing resuscitation at a newborn baby's bedside.

Bettles added: "It is always so encouraging to see our distributors' enthusiasm grow during these meetings and leave very motivated to grow their Inditherm business. This year there was a particularly pleasing response to the opportunities for LifeStart and we hope to see export activity for that market sector moving forward in the year ahead."

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News: Another NICE boost for Inditherm

AIM-listed Rotherham company, Inditherm, has received further backing from the National Institute for Health & Care Excellence (NICE) for its innovative medical products.

Manvers-based Inditherm has developed products using low voltage carbon polymer technology to provide heat. Its systems are used for patients undergoing operations which carry risk of inadvertent hypothermia and in neonatal wards.

NICE published guidance in 2011 advising that the Inditherm patient warming mattress should be considered for use in patients at risk of inadvertent hypothermia. The NHS in England alone could save over £15m per annum if forced air warming was replaced by Inditherm's mattress for eligible procedures in most of the 3,030 operating theatres.

NICE is recognised as being a world leader in setting standards for high quality healthcare and are the most prolific producer of clinical guidelines in the world. It has recently published adoption support information to try and help NHS hospitals plan and start using Inditherm patient warming.

Under the Health Technologies Adoption Programme, the information is based on consultations with users of the Inditherm system from four different NHS Trusts that have converted from forced air warming as a primary hypothermia prevention technology. Some of the benefits reported from the NHS users and highlighted by NICE were: improved outcomes; cost savings; practical benefits including ease of use and set-up; and environmental benefits.

The case studies show that Inditherm products can help prevent perioperative hypothermia and in turn reduce infection rates, use of blood products, recovery times and mortality. They also show that Trusts can make substantial cost savings whilst maintaining, or in some cases improving, patient care.

Nick Bettles, chief executive at Inditherm, said: "This is a very comprehensive set of documents that should certainly help NHS trusts in their preparations for adoption of Inditherm as their primary perioperative patient warming in place of traditional forced air warming. The amount of information, all based on real life experience in an NHS environment and independently prepared by NICE, should facilitate uptake elsewhere.

"The fact that this has been carried out with direct input from four independent NHS trusts who have all implemented the change, experienced the issues first hand and realised the benefits in practice should give other hospitals confidence to adopt Inditherm patient warming, with all the advantages it clearly delivers."

Earlier this month Inditherm reported a 23% rise in its turnover to £2.1m for the year to 31 December 2013 – up from £1.7m in the previous year. Pre-tax losses fell from £176,000 to £93,000.

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News: Inditherm increase profits

Innovative Rotherham company, Inditherm, has seen an increase in turnover and profits as it sets its sights on accelerating growth.

Manvers-based Inditherm has developed products using low voltage carbon polymer technology to provide heat. Its systems are used for patients undergoing operations which carry risk of inadvertent hypothermia and in neonatal wards.

CosyTherm uses the low voltage carbon polymer technology to help prevent hypothermia in new born babies. The systems are already highly popular in the UK and used in almost half of all NHS neonatal units, with that number still growing. The product is also gaining increased international recognition, with users in over 30 countries world-wide.

For the 12 months ended December 31 2013, the AIM-listed firm reported that turnover increased by 23% to just over £2m compared to £1.6m in 2012 and gross profit rose to £1.1m, up by 21% on the £960k in 2012, reflecting sustained operating margins. Post-tax loss were reduced to £77k from £164k in 2012.

Uncertainties in the NHS has resulted in an underlying flatter performance with Inditherm believing that the apparent slowing of growth is caused in the UK by ever-tightening financial constraints, particularly with regard to capital expenditure in the NHS, rather than a dampening of enthusiasm for its products.

Overall medical revenue in 2013 grew by 30%, with sizeable orders placed in the first quarter of the year, some of which were delayed from 2012. UK order levels grew by 66% in 2013, including a significant level of extended warranty and maintenance contracts.

The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) published guidance in 2011 advising that the Inditherm patient warming mattress should be considered for use in patients at risk of inadvertent hypothermia.

The NHS in England alone could save over £15m per annum if forced air warming was replaced by Inditherm's mattress for eligible procedures in most of the 3,030 operating theatres.

Looking ahead, Inditherm believe that the compelling arguments for the cost saving potential in the operating theatre area, backed by the support of NICE guidance, are likely to continue to attract attention from the NHS in its current economic situation.

Inditherm also took on distributorship of the ATOM neonatal product range which has shown very promising early signs.

Although it did not experience growth in export orders for the medical business in 2013, resource for export activities were increased during the year and the board believe that this will allow them to increase focus in this area of the business and drive progress with overseas distribution channels. Action has been taken following some disappointing performances from some distributors and some encouraging signs have been seen at the start of 2014.

Iditherm switched its focus to the medical arena but it maintains an industrial business selling heating products for bulk containers, drums and cylinders. Orders for standard products grew by over 64% compared to the previous year, whilst ADI orders fell by a similar percentage. ADI were granted a licence to promote heating solutions to the food, chemicals, pharmaceuticals and petrochemicals markets in 2010 but this agreement has been terminated.

Mark Abrahams, chairman of Inditherm, said: "We expect our underlying growth in sales to continue, albeit that the uneven order flow pattern will persist. This year, given the current level of active enquiries, we anticipate income to be biased towards the second half. Inevitably this creates some uncertainty over the rate of progress we can achieve. We are applying our strengthened resources towards accelerating growth."

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News: Payback for NHS Trust who chose Inditherm

A health trust using innovative patient warming products from Rotherham-based Inditherm has received payback on its investment in less than a year.

The Pennine Acute Trust operates four separate hospitals in the Greater Manchester region, with a total of 43 operating theatres covering a broad range of surgical specialties and is the largest non-teaching hospital trust in the UK. They had been spending over £100,000 per year on forced air warming disposable blankets prior to the introduction of Inditherm, warming approximately 50% of surgical patients.

AIM-listed Inditherm has developed products that use low voltage carbon polymer technology to provide heat and unlike other forms of heating, there are no hot spots. In addition, the systems ensure that every surgical patient can be warmed at the same running cost as a light-bulb.

By switching to products made by the Manvers firm, the Pennine Acute Trust has seen a payback on investment in less than a year, with projected savings of £300,000 over five years.

Inditherm was selected as the product of choice following exhaustive evaluations and it was decided to equip 31 operating theatres and 11 recovery beds across the Trust. The change of technology will allow nearly all patients undergoing surgery to be warmed automatically as soon as they are placed on the operating table, helping to improve clinical outcomes and reduce the risk of hypothermia.

The business case projected yearly budget savings over a five year period, based on buying the Inditherm systems up front. In practice, the budgeted savings for the first two years were exceeded in the first eight months with payback on the initial investment realised in just ten months.

Nick Bettles, chief executive of Inditherm, said: "It is very helpful to have this case study, documenting as it does the practical considerations and the cost savings actually achieved in a real life situation within the NHS. We hope it will prove of value to other hospitals considering change.

"Uptake of Inditherm patient warming is growing all the time, and an increasing number of Trusts are understanding and embracing the real benefits, both clinical and financial, that can be realised. In the current climate of budget pressure Inditherm offers NHS managers the opportunity to make a relatively simple change for the better, delivering a step change in cost reduction with additional benefits for clinical care.

"Although not used in this case, Inditherm also offer payment schemes that do not require up-front investment, allowing the use of existing revenue budgets and immediate savings. This case study certainly proves what can be achieved in practice."

The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) published guidance in 2011 advising that the Inditherm patient warming mattress should be considered for use in patients at risk of inadvertent hypothermia.

The NHS in England alone could save over £15m per annum if forced air warming was replaced by Inditherm's mattress for eligible procedures in most of the 3,030 operating theatres.

One problem for Inditherm is the time it takes to go through processes within the NHS. The Pennine Acute Trust project took two and a half years from start to finish.

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News: Inditherm helps to show why British business is great

Innovative Rotherham company, Inditherm, has been chosen for a national campaign to help inspire other small businesses to take steps to grow.

The GREAT Britain campaign is a partnership between private enterprise and Government to highlight support for businesses aspiring to succeed and to encourage entrepreneurial spirit.


Yesterday saw the launch of a new business support website that aims to make it easy to access the services and products, including Manufacturing Advice Service, National Apprenticeship Service and Growth Accelerator, that help businesses grow.

The website features a number of leading British companies in inspiring case studies on different aspects of business to show how the support available has helped the companies to grow.

Skills and Enterprise Minister Matthew Hancock said: "Government has an important role in providing a coherent package of measures to support businesses, but there is also a role for business-to-business support, with successful, growing small businesses talking to others about how exporting, hiring and business planning can take a business to the next level."

Manvers-based Inditherm is featured in the export section of the website which details how the firm benefited from the UK Trade & Investment's (UKTI's) Passport to Export scheme.

AIM-listed Inditherm has developed products using low voltage carbon polymer technology to provide heat. Its systems are used for patients undergoing operations which carry risk of inadvertent hypothermia and in neonatal wards.

Nick Bettles, CEO of Inditherm, said: "The biggest challenge to export was that we weren't exporting at all when I arrived. The UK was not a big enough market to support the business, so we needed to expand reasonably quickly."

The UKTI support helped Inditherm implement a successful international strategy, enabling it to access new markets and build their reputation globally, with particular success across the Middle East, China and Europe. Support included a UKTI advisor and matched funding for exhibiting at Medica, the world's largest medical marketplace.

Inditherm will be back at Medica 2013 in Düsseldorf later this month showcasing its medical products as part of a large delegation from The Association of British Healthcare Industries.

CosyTherm uses the low voltage carbon polymer technology to help prevent hypothermia in new born babies. The systems are already highly popular in the UK and used in almost half of all NHS neonatal units, with that number still growing. The product is also gaining increased international recognition, with users in over 30 countries world-wide.

Bettles adds that the events have been very worthwhile, identifying good partners that have driven good business. As a consequence, he adds, Inditherm's export activities "have gone further than we might have done."

Inditherm is the second Rotherham company to be selected for this campaign. Last year, Mike Maddock and Dan Fleetcroft of Performance Engineered Solutions (PES) Ltd, on the Advanced Manufacturing Park (AMP), were used as a case study when the campaign was called "Business In You."

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News: Royal visit to region

His Royal Highness (HRH) The Duke of Gloucester KG GCVO has visited Inditherm in Rotherham to see its innovative range of products.

Prince Richard, The Queen's cousin, visited the company's headquarters at Manvers before going on to officially open the University Technical College (UTC) Sheffield.

AIM-listed Inditherm has developed products using low voltage carbon polymer technology to provide heat. Its systems are used for patients undergoing operations which carry risk of inadvertent hypothermia and in neonatal wards. It is also used in industrial applications such as keeping pipes at a set temperature.

CosyTherm uses the low voltage carbon polymer technology to help prevent hypothermia in new born babies. The systems are already highly popular in the UK and used in almost half of all NHS neonatal units, with that number still growing. The product is also gaining increased international recognition, with users in over 30 countries world-wide.

Nick Bettles, CEO of Inditherm, said: "Inditherm is unique in that we are a small UK manufacturing company utilising our own carbon polymer heating technology to manufacture specialist products for the most demanding and diverse markets both at home and around the world. We are delighted to have been able to welcome His Royal Highness to see for himself something of what we are achieving here, both in terms of technological advancement and commercial success."

The UTC, based on Sheffield Council's Porter Brook Site in Sheffield city centre, was the first UTC in Yorkshire to open when the first students began studying at the £9.9m campus in September. It is helping to shape the future workforce for two of the region's key sectors - advanced engineering and manufacturing, and creative and digital media.

His Royal Highness met students and staff during a one-hour tour. Student Daniel Kay, 16, who is studying advanced engineering and manufacturing, demonstrated to His Royal Highness how to make test parts on a computer numerical control (CNC) lathe (pictured). Daniel, who wants to go onto a higher level apprenticeship or university after completing his studies at the UTC Sheffield, said: "It was a great experience. His Royal Highness asked me whether I had programmed the machine software. I explained that my teacher had helped me, and I demonstrated how to test the parts."

Student Thomas Gladwin, 16, also showed His Royal Highness how to set up the CNC milling machines. He said: "I'm very glad I took part today. I'm really enjoying my studies at the UTC and I hope to go onto a higher level apprenticeship or university afterwards."

Nick Crew, principal of the UTC Sheffield, said: "This is a really proud day for all those involved in the UTC project. The official opening marks the end of the successful design and build programme and the start of something really special for the young people of our region."

The UTC application has been sponsored and led by The Sheffield College with Sheffield Hallam University and the Sheffield Chamber of Commerce and Industry as co-sponsors but it is effectively led by employers from the relevant sectors within the city region. The UTC Steering Group includes representatives from The Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (AMRC) with Boeing, Newburgh Engineering and Firth Rixson.

The student experience at the UTC is dominated by employer-led projects and supporters include AESSEAL, Darron Tools, Rolls-Royce, PES Ltd and Tata Steel.

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News: Improved performance for Inditherm

A period of improved performance for Inditherm has seen the AIM-listed Rotherham company return to revenue growth.

The Manvers firm is a provider of low voltage, cost-effective heating technology that uses a carbon-based, electrically conductive polymer to deliver heat. It is used in industrial applications such as keeping pipes at a set temperature and also in various medical applications.

In its latest financial result for the six months ended June 30 2013, Inditherm reported that revenue increased 23% to just over a £1m compared to £812,000 in 2012. This was on the back of a 22% increase in orders.

The performance led to a small profit before tax for the first half of the year compared to a loss of £73,000 in the same period last year.

Inditherm has shifted its focus to the medical market where its systems are used for patients undergoing operations which carry risk of inadvertent hypothermia and in neonatal wards. The first half of 2013 showed a good growth in the medical division of 32% over the same period in 2012, boosted by orders the company had expected to receive last year.

A healthy increase in orders have been secured from the NHS during difficult market conditions leading to UK Medical order growth year-on-year of over 90% in the period to the end of August 2013. In addition, Inditherm announced that it has over £270,000 of confirmed future service contracts representing a build up of repeat business that will be realised as sales revenue over the next five years.

The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE), the UK government's regulatory authority, issued guidance in 2011 that supports the use of Inditherm patient warming systems for patients undergoing operations which carry risk of inadvertent hypothermia.

Order growth in export markets was more modest, but still showed a 20% improvement year-on-year to the end of August 2013, helped by good orders from China and South Africa. Inditherm said that it would invest further in distributor support after receiving a positive overall outlook from overseas partners.

Mark Abrahams, chairman of Inditherm, said: "Against the backdrop of a break-even result and with underlying order growth restored to 22%, we have established a platform from which the next phase of business development can be achieved.

"The impact of NICE guidance has been a major driver of our UK growth, but there remain significant challenges dealing with the NHS, which results in an uneven order pattern.

"We believe that the business has made considerable progress following the difficult market conditions over the last four years and our strategic shift to being fully focussed as a Medical business. We do not expect the uncertainties associated with the markets in which our Medical business operates to disappear, so we anticipate ongoing uneven order flow. Against this challenging backdrop we expect to continue our revenue growth but, to fuel this, we will be investing in additional targeted resource which will slow the rate of translation into profit."

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News: Inditherm aims to make it big in Japan

Rotherham company, Inditherm, is hoping for an increase in exports after its innovative medical products received approval for sale in Japan.

The Manvers firm is the only UK manufacturer of patient warming systems and have developed products using low voltage carbon polymer technology to provide heat.

Inditherm's CosyTherm neonatal warming system range has been approved by the medical device authorities in Japan following a lengthy ratification process and now allows Inditherm to commence promotion of the product.

CosyTherm uses the low voltage carbon polymer technology to help prevent hypothermia in new born babies. Warming is completely even, avoiding hot and cold spots and allowing much better heat transfer. The system is already highly popular in the UK and used in almost half of all NHS neonatal units, with that number still growing. The product is also gaining increased international recognition, with users in over 30 countries world-wide.

The AIM-listed firm will work with a new distributor in Japan, Tokyo-based Star Product, that has regional offices covering all of the country, plus an extensive network of regional dealers.

The company believes that, as most of Japan's 8,000 or so hospitals provide maternity services but relatively few centres have neonatal intensive care facilities, CosyTherm could be successful in reducing the need to transfer babies to a regional neonatal centre.

Donald Cameron, CEO of Star Product, said: "CosyTherm is a unique product that offers a real benefit for the care of newborn babies and we are optimistic for its chance of success in the Japanese market."

Nick Bettles, chief executive of Inditherm, added: "It is good to have the registration complete and distribution already in place to exploit this opportunity. Star Product, with its well established sales network, is well placed to provide effective market penetration. We will continue to work with our existing partner, IFK, in the perioperative sector, where they have established good sales growth over the last five years."

Inditherm recently became the exclusive UK & Ireland distributor of the product range from Japanese firm, ATOM.

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