A SCOTTISH software firm is set to maintain its rapid growth next year in a range of deals with customers, including the Saudi Arabian military, under discussion.
Gael expects to grow its sales by around 20% next year based on the company's success in markets such as aviation and healthcare.
Based in East Kilbride, Gael develops software which can be used in areas like risk management and for monitoring compliance with regulations.
Chief executive Ashley Marron said the company expects growth to be powered by continued success in overseas markets like the Middle East.
The company has been enjoying a boom in demand in the Middle East since opening an office in Dubai in March.
"We have some significant deals under discussion," said Mr Marron. "We are working with significant firms in food packaging, we are working in government services, with regulators."
The company also supplies systems to hospitals in Kuwait and Oman.
Mr Marron said he will fly out to Saudi Arabia this week for discussions with the Saudi military about a potential contract, without giving details.
Gael is on course to increase sales by around 20% annually to a record £8 million in the year to December 31 after enjoying a string of contract wins. The company has carved out a lucrative niche for its systems, which have capitalised on increased investment in areas such as risk management and regulatory compliance around the world.
Gael has enjoyed a significant boost to revenues this year from a contract it won to supply an integrated risk management and heath and safety system to Avincis, the helicopter company.
Mr Marron said Gael's solutions will be supplied to operations in seven countries ranging from France to Chile.
"It can allow them to learn from an incident in one geography and pass that to others," said Mr Marron.
Gael recently established a sales presence in China. The company has also been winning work in the UK.
It has gained contracts from a number of health trusts in England and Wales and is working with the Welsh Government on a system that could be rolled out across pharmacies in the country. The Scottish life sciences sector is also an important market.
Gael currently employs around 100 people in East Kilbride and Mr Marron expects around 10 additional jobs to be created there next year in areas such as sales and marketing. The company is on course to make profits of around £1.5m before tax this year, paving the way for sustained investment in research and development.
"The founders of the company still own it and we have no debt. With no external shareholders there's nobody pressuring us to do anything stupid and we can reinvest," said Mr Marron.
Gael was founded by Donald Maciver and Derek Jack in the wake of the 1991 closure of the giant Unisys electronics plant in Livingston where they both worked.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article