Deals Done Applied Multilayers
The Business
Applied Multilayers is based in Coalville, Leicestershire. The company designs and manufactures equipment and processes for multilayer optical coating.
The company was established in 2002 and currently employs 15 staff. Turnover in 2008 will be approximately £2m.
The Management
The management team includes Dr Michael Walls (Chairman), formerly with the highly successful VG Instruments Group plc, is well known for the commercial application of surface and thin film physics and Dr Des Gibson (Managing Director), formerly with Pilkington plc and Satisloh AG, is regarded as a key player in precision optics. Both are widely respected both as entrepreneurs and as leading figures within the global optical coating market. Tony Abramson is Finance Director, obtained his FCA while with Coopers & Lybrand.
The Oppourtunity
Applied Multilayers Limited (“AML”) has developed world leading technology for the deposition of high quality thin film optical coatings. The process known as “Closed Field” Reactive Magnetron Sputtering has the potential to become the dominant optical coating technology worldwide over the next 5 -10 years. The company has already developed a range of system platforms and has secured business in sectors such as OLED flat panel displays, electrochromic coatings, ophthalmic coatings and Infra-red coatings. The company has a number of its systems operating worldwide and has achieved profitability on sales ~ £2M in 2008.
Magnetron Sputtering is a coating process that uses energetic ions from a plasma to transfer atomised material from a target to form a thin film on a substrate which is often a glass or plastic part. Magnetron Sputtering is already acknowledged to produce some of the highest quality optical thin films available but current techniques are expensive, complex and not scaleable. AML’s process uses magnetrons with opposite polarity to form a closed magnetic field which contains the plasma without the need for an auxiliary ion source. The resulting coating energy is ideal for producing exceptional quality optical thin films. The new process is simple, scaleable and significantly cheaper than alternative techniques. The process is low temperature and the coatings can be deposited on polymer substrates. The technology which is patented has received international scientific acclaim.
The company has already established thin film deposition processes for metal contacts, semiconducting layers, transmitting conducting oxides (TCO’s) and this has attracted attention from the thin film solar cell market. The company has already received its first order for a single chamber photovoltaic system production tool.
The market for Solar power systems was worth $17.2B in 2007. Total installed capacity was 2,826MW representing a 62% increase on the previous year. The drivers behind this dramatic growth include increasing energy demand, security and cost of oil supplies as well as concern over global warming. About 94% of solar cell production is currently based on first generation crystalline silicon technology. Second generation solar cells based on thin film technology on inexpensive and lightweight substrates are now emerging and are forecast to outsell crystalline silicon by 2013. AML’s low temperature sputtering technology is ideal for depositing multilayer thin film photovoltaics on metal or polymer sheet (as well as glass). The company has already received funding from the Technology Strategy Board to work with the Centre for Renewable Energy Systems and Technology (CREST) at Loughborough University, Pilkington Group and Arup Partners on a £1.53M thin film CdTe photovoltaic project with building integration. AML will use the new investment together with further funds to support this development and enter the mainstream global market for solar cell systems.
The Funders View
Tom Yardley MD East Midlands Business Angels Ltd (EMBA)
Applied Multilayers has a number of features which attracted us as a group of private investors. They have disruptive, world leading, patented technology and have sold machines into a range of industries internationally. The management team are strong both technically and commercially. Customers who are ordering 2nd & 3rd machines confirm that the technology is the best available. The Company serves large markets from mirror and anti reflective coatings on sunwear (eg Easypower) to infra-red coatings for defence applications. Their clean energy thin film solar power applications are particularly exciting, as endorsed by their involvement with Pilkington Group, Arup Partners and Loughborough University in an exciting building integrated photovoltaic project. The investment was introduced to us by Catapult for whom this is a follow on investment. Some of our private investor group have good understanding of the industry and we believe this business will be attractive to trade buyers in the near future.
It's not just about the money
In addition to support from investors, the company has already made 3 key appointments including a Physics postdoctoral researcher previously at Loughborough University to join its thin film process development team.