Telecoms company Aerelink has bought Rapier Systems, the networking and wireless telecoms business, for £500,000. The company, headquartered in Widnes, paid £200,000 for the purchase of Rapier, with an investment of £300,000 to expand the business. Through the deal, Aerelink will also become a direct business partner of Alcatel-Lucent, and will gain access to its product portfolio of wireless network infrastructure, telephony, contact centre and unified communication and collaboration solutions.

Medalytix’s retinal image software i-Grading has been adopted by the Scottish Diabetic Retinopathy Screening Collaborative (SDRSC). The Daresbury-based company’s automated retinopathy screening technology assesses the quality of digital retinal images to detect the presence of microaneurysms at the back of the eye, identifying early signs of diabetic retinopathy.

A trainee accountant from KPMG’s Liverpool office has been awarded a Global Inspiration Award by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW). The award recognised his achievements since returning to work after suffering a severe spinal injury in August 2005. Iain McIndoe, an ACA trainee in tax, spent 12 months recovering in hospital before making arrangements to return to work. The ICAEW Foundation recognises ACA students who have overcome personal adversity while pursuing their studies.

Downing, the Liverpool commercial property group, secured two lettings from its office portfolio. The charity Mencap Liverpool took a 1,200 sq ft suite in Federation House on Hope Street, relocating from its current offices on London Road to the building’s fourth floor on a three-year lease. Federation House has three suites remaining, ranging from 800 sq ft to 3,115. Downing also let 1,500 sq ft of office space on Old Hall Street to insurance broker Butterworth Spengler on a five-year lease.