Today (9 July), the Minister of State for Trade Policy, George Hollingbery visited Viper Innovations for a tour of its site in Portishead.

The award-winning business provides cutting edge electrical cable monitoring technology for global industries across the world including subsea and rail and was previously selected by the Department for International Trade (DIT) to be an Export Champion due to its success in overseas markets.

The Minister and Head of DIT South West, Paul Shand were introduced to Neil Douglas and Max Nodder, the Co-owners and Directors of Viper Innovations, who showed them around the premises.

Viper Innovations Managing Director Neil Douglas said:

“It was good to discuss with the Minister both the opportunities and challenges facing us in our export planning for CableGuardian.

“We are already vastly experienced in exporting within our primary business segment of subsea oil and gas but with CableGuardian currently seeing its first deployment with Network Rail, the opportunities for export into different geographical regions and business segments brings massive opportunities for Viper.”

The tour covered Viper’s electronics lab where core research and development are undertaken. The Minister was shown how the electronics are built and bench tested, and he also received a demonstration of the company’s own cloud-hosted software, which is an integral part of its world class electrical cable integrity monitoring system – CableGuardian.

Minister of State for Trade Policy, George Hollingbery MP said:

“Viper Innovations is a great example of a business taking advantage of exporting opportunities and finding real success in international markets as a result.

“Seeing first-hand the technology that Viper’s engineers are developing, and discussing the company’s future export plans reaffirms the UK’s reputation as a global hub for innovation and tech.

“It is British exporters like Viper that will play a major role in helping forge stronger trading relationships as we leave the EU and I hope its success inspires other companies in the South West and across the UK to consider exporting and showcasing their business on the global stage.”

Viper also hosted a roundtable discussion where they were joined by local exporting companies including other Export Champions. It was a chance to discuss current barriers and opportunities to export and identify where the government and DIT can assist. Minister Hollingbery was keen to hear any issues that could be addressed by the Ministry of International Trade and Industry or any other government department.

Visit the CableGuardian microsite: https://cableguardian.viperinnovations.com/