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Pounds 7m funding boost for growth of IT services [Gloucestershire Echo (England)](Gloucestershire Echo (England) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) A GLOUCESTERSHIRE firm which provides managed IT services and cloud computing has secured Pounds 7 million of investment to help it expand worldwide. APSU TWP Limited, based in South Cerney, is a premier business partner of IBM and employs more than 100 people. It has been given Pounds 7m of investment from the Business Growth Fund (BGF), an independent, bank-backed company established to help the country's expanding businesses. APSU specialises in IBM's Power i range of servers and is IBM's highest accredited business partner in Europe. APSU was formed in 2011 by chief executive Steve Morris, pictured, from the merger of AssurIT with Apex Computers International Limited and is forecasting turnover of Pounds 25 million next year. Last year it was named as the fastest growing IT company in the South West in the Sunday Times Tech Track 100 and ranked 20th overall in the UK. Mr Morris has more than 25 years' experience in the IT industry. BGF's investment will enable APSU to recruit technical personnel in the UK to support overseas customers and build a bigger sales and operational capability in North America and other worldwide markets. Mike Tait joins the APSU board as non- executive chairman, along with Simon Parkins, who becomes global sales director. Mr Tait was vice-president and general manager, Europe-Africa, for Unisys Corporation, the world's second largest computer company. Mr Parkins has held senior directorship appointments in companies such as Misys, IBM and Oracle, where he grew both existing business lines and also established new worldwide markets. Mr Morris said: "APSU has enjoyed significant growth over the last three years, primarily due to our expertise in Power i and the development and deployment of our unique, cloud-based, managed IT services to companies across all industry sectors. "The investment by BGF will provide the platform to build upon our exceptional growth as APSU develops and expands our unique feature- rich, cloud-based offerings for the UK, Europe and worldwide markets. "APSU has an exciting and profitable future ahead and I very much look forward to working with BGF, as well as continuing to work with our customers and partners, both in the UK and internationally, to ensure that we exceed market expectations for both innovation and quality of services." Ned Dorbin, BGF investment director, said: 'We are delighted to be investing in APSU. It is a company led by an experienced management team, at the head of which is Steve Morris, who has a very successful track record of growing businesses in this sector. "This is a fantastic opportunity to invest in a highly accredited business that is well placed to grow by capitalising on an increasing trend to outsource IT services. There is also the potential for considerable overseas growth driven by its strong relationships with IBM and other blue chip vendors, its expertise in Power i and its managed services offering." BGF was set up to help growing businesses with a turnover between Pounds 5 million and Pounds 100 million and is backed by the major UK banking groups including Barclays, HSBC, Lloyds, RBS and Standard Chartered. (c) 2014 ProQuest Information and Learning Company; All Rights Reserved. |