Marine fuel testing firm secures LLoyds Register tie-up

Guardian Marine Testing (GMT) has formed a partnership with Fobas, Lloyd's Register's fuel consultancy service.

The move has seen London based Lloyds, formed in 1760, take a stake in GMT, based at the Wilton Centre, near Redcar, which offers fuel-testing systems to the shipping industry.

As a result GMT, which recently developed a system to detect chemical contaminations in fuel, is investing 500,000 in an expansion of its laboratories and is in the process of recruiting 20 staff.

Managing director Andrew Shaw said that he expected the number of samples the firm tests to increase to 4,500 a month by this time next year and turnover to reach £5m.

He said: "It is a massive success for the business.

"Since August 15 we have had 14 new staff arrive and two or three in the month prior to that.

"It was very much an influx on the back of the association with Lloyds.

"We are still at Wilton and have gone up from three labs to five and basically taken a whole corridor."

The business was formed in 2007 by Mr Shaw, operations director Paul Livingston and technical director Andrew McEwen, who had all previously worked together in the marine fuel testing industry.

Mr Shaw added: "In that three years or so we have had good success in the marketplace.

"A conservatism exists in the marine industry so for us to have had the success in a relatively short period of time showed we must be doing something right."

Douglas Raitt, global manager for Fobas, said: "Through our investment in GMT we will further improve our ability to serve the shipping industry.

"We understand the industry and we understand fuel - so do GMT, so this is a really good fit for both companies.

"Fuel represents one of the most significant operational costs for ship operators and the impact of poor quality or contaminated fuel could put the safety and environmental performance of fleet operations at risk - fuel analysis is vital."