Onyx Group planning 2million pound investment in Scottish expansion
Onyx Group, the fast-growing risk management and data security firm, is planning a £2 million investment in its operation in Scotland and it said it will add 15 jobs this year, taking its headcount north of the border to 65.
Speaking to The Herald, Hugh Gillen, managing director of Onyx Scotland, which operates the largest commercial data centre north of the border in Edinburgh, also said it was on the look-out for further Scottish acquisitions and that the company could spend a “seven- figure sum” – up to £10m – on the purchase.
The company, which has its headquarters in Stockton-on-Tees, has expanded rapidly over the past two-and-a-half years on the back of a series of acquisitions, including Falkirk and Glasgow-based Campbell Lee and Dundas IT in Edinburgh.
Gillen also said it aims to double its turnover in the next two years on the back of acquisitions and more public sector work.
The company has also seen strong organic growth and secured key overseas contracts, notably with Dubai World, the owner of P&O Ferries and Legoland. North of the border, Onyx works with law firm Harper Macleod and insurance group Scottish Friendly.
Gillen said: “Close to half of Onyx’s total workforce is employed in Scotland – 40 in Edinburgh and 10 in Glasgow, out of 112 across the UK, and we plan to double the Edinburgh staff to 20 in the coming months. We’re also increasing capacity at our data centres.
“At the same time, we are opening a new workplace recovery centre near Glasgow Airport, which will be an addition to the three we already have.
“Onyx has become one of the leading providers of business continuity and workplace recovery in the UK, and we intend to continue growing.”
The company, named among Britain’s fastest-growing technology companies in the Sunday Times Tech Track 100, began life as an IT service provider in the 1990s.
But at the end of the millennium, it almost went bust after being snapped up by a US quoted telecoms business at a dot.com-inflated price.
After the technology bubble burst, Onyx returned to calmer waters after a management buy-out, and it has now diversified into data and network security and workplace recovery – and sales rocketed from £3m in 2006 to £12.4m last year, with a pre-tax profit of £1.14m.
