Insider Media Limited

Solihull-based Interplex Solar Technology has won its first order in Africa following support from UK Trade and Investment (UKTI). The company, which designs and develops solar products, has secured a deal worth £55,000 to transport solar panels to Kenya.

With advice and support from UKTI, managing director Mark Thompson has spent the last eight months designing and developing new solar products specifically for overseas markets, especially Africa, India and Pakistan.

Thompson, who employs three people at the company, said: "We've just achieved our biggest order yet - worth about £55,000 - for solar panels to go to Kenya. This is exactly the breakthrough we are looking for as I see our easy-to-install products as ideal for charities working to provide energy to distant villages, for example. With our DIY kit, village children would be able to do their homework at night for an outlay of about £60.

"We showcased products such as our solar powered Belisha Beacon and roadside traffic cones to a global marketplace resulting in interest from companies in Germany, Finland and Spain."

Exports account for about 60 per cent of the company’s annual turnover of £150,000.

Jonathan Webber, UKTI's director of international trade for Birmingham, said: "Interplex Solar has a brilliant range from solar-powered traffic products to the new DIY kit that can provide power to garden sheds or homes in the African or Indian continents."