Oxford Instruments wins UK Exporter of the Year Award 2008

On 4th February, the KMPG 2008 Business Awards were presented to those businesses that have made outstanding contributions to developing Sino-UK business and bilateral trade. At a dinner hosted by the 48 Group Club in London ’s Grosvenor House, over 1000 guests gathered for Britain’s biggest celebration to welcome the Year of the Rat. Guests included H.E. Madame Fu Ying, Chinese Ambassador; Minister of Trade, Lord Digby Jones; Stephen Green, Group Chairman of HSBC Holdings; Peter Sands, Chief Executive, Standard Chartered plc; and many senior UK political and business leaders.

The 48 Group Club is an independent business network committed to promoting positive relations with China, and the winners of the Awards are pioneers who are setting an example to the thousands of businesses that will be needed to deliver the trade targets set out in January 2008 by Premiers Wen Jiabao and Gordon Brown.
 
Prime Minister Gordon Brown said in Beijing on 18th January 2008, Premier Wen and I have signed up today to a new target for a 50% increase in bilateral trade in goods and services, rising to 60 billion by 2010.

The UK Exporter of the Year Award 2008 was awarded to Oxford Instruments plc, for the company demonstrating the utmost energy, novelty, patience and persistence, in the field of exports from UK to China during the year.  It was collected Mr Charles Holroyd, Executive Director.

Oxford Instruments has an average annual growth of 50% of export sales to China. Its products can be found in every Chinese province.
 
Starting with annual sales to China of less than one million US dollars in 1997, annual sales to China now exceed $US 25 million. The customers are mainly top universities and institutes with high level scientific research requirements. Starting with a representative office in Beijing in 1997 Oxford Instruments now has offices in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Chengdu, and a dedicated customer support centre located in Shanghai. China has become the fastest growing market for Oxford Instruments across the world. Another important product Oxford Instruments exports to China is co-operation. This means the company has set up unit-laboratories with many universities, institutes and factories so playing an important role in the growth of China, and strengthening the relationship between the peoples of China and the UK.
 
The company was established in the UK in 1959 as a spin-out from Oxford University. Oxford Instruments specialises in the design, manufacture and support of high-technology tools and systems for industry, research, education, space, energy, healthcare, and environment protection. Oxford Instruments aims to be the leading provider of tools and systems for the emerging nanotechnology and bioscience markets.

http://www.48groupclub.org