We operate across end markets with long term growth drivers: Healthcare & LifeScience, Semiconductor and Communications, Advanced Materials, Energy & Environment, Quantum Technology and Research & Fundamental Science.

Our markets contribute significantly to a greener, healthier, more connected advanced society, in line with our purpose. They are reinforced by global sustainability drivers, including the switch to renewable energy and EVs, the development of more effective medicines and healthcare, better food safety and increased connectivity via 5G and IoT applications

We provide premium technology with high end capability and functionality, which are critical to the success of our customers.

Our advanced capabilities are designed for ease of use, resulting in reduced training time and wider application.

We also provide additional software products enabling efficient, in-depth analysis of high-volume raw data for faster results

Our resilience is derived from our positions across six primary growth markets, and multiple sub-segments. We have a proven ability to apply our technologies to attractive new end markets, providing further diversification and additional growth.

As a result of our premium capabilities, our customer list spans both academic institutions and blue-chip commercial customers, in roughly equal proportions. Our products are used in fundamental research, applied research and development, and high tech manufacturing.

We have a global customer base with significant revenue from Asia, North America and Europe.

Our structural diversity means no individual customer accounts for more than a single digit percentage of revenue.

We have an increased focus on the provision of tailored, long-term support contracts at product sale with attractive margins that enable customers to optimise their use of our equipment throughout its lifetime.

This end-to end service offering supplements our revenue from each customer, with scope to increase this further. Market-specific software products provide further tailored support to increase customers’ capabilities.

We are making the provision of our service offerings more effective and efficient by cross training employees across product lines, developing regional service centres closer to our customers and increasing the use of remote service options.

Our investment decisions are aligned to our market intimacy – understanding the evolving trends in our markets – and based on understanding the needs of our customers.

We develop and update long-term technology roadmaps which guide where we invest.

We have a high level of ongoing R&D investment (typically at 8–10% of revenue per annum), to keep our products at the leading edge of technology.

We are investing in production capabilities and increased capacity, including the creation of state-of-the-art facilities. Together with a focus on enhancing the resilience and sustainability of our supply chain, this will drive our profit margins higher, with significant opportunity remaining to increase our profitability.

We are also investing to enhance our customer service, including digitalisation.

Over and above our significant organic investments, we seek to supplement our growth strategy, where appropriate, by acquiring highly complementary businesses which provide enhanced opportunities within our target markets.

Our strategy is to buy carefully and prudently in markets and technologies we know well, with strategic fit and leading capability a necessary prerequisite to acquisition.

Our strong and prudent balance sheet and cash generative business model ensure we are well positioned to pursue opportunities.