THE North-East division of an IT support company is planning to double its turnover in the next 18 months, as it rolls out a service.

The Technology Services Group (TSG), based in Newcastle, yesterday launched System Care.

It is investing £2.5m on the service, which can run real time health checks on the IT networks of small and medium sized businesses (SMEs).

It is the culmination of a culture change at TSG, which wants to shift from being seen as an emergency service to a problem prevention role.

Customer service director Simon Kujawa said: "In the past, it was very much a break/fix, emergency service scenario. Customers wanted us to be more pro-active, to anticipate their issues."

Trials are taking place in its North-East wing, before the system is rolled out to TSG's other four divisions, covering Scotland, the North and Midlands.

Business development director Nigel Hudson said: "Many south-eastern companies look at the North as being almost another country.

"Innovation is supposed to be driven by the South-East. We are doing pioneering work here and you don't see that very often in the way businesses evolve."

Recent customer satisfaction surveys report 90 per cent of clients would recommend TSG to another business, up from 80 per cent at the start of the year.

It has also introduced large plasma screens around the building, featuring both good and bad comments from customers.

TSG was founded 18 months ago, when chairman Graham Wylie, who also co-founded accountancy software group Sage, bought independent firm Joynson's. As part of the expansion, the North-East operation has moved into headquarters on the Team Valley, Gateshead, yards away from the old premises.

Since the transformation into TSG North-East, its turnover has doubled from £4.5m to £9m and staff numbers have soared from 35 to about 100.