A MARINE engineering firm is excelling in major international projects after opening a new factory to strengthen its global position, The Northern Echo can reveal.

Subsea Innovation Limited, in Darlington, is making and sending equipment to Australia and the Middle-East.

The firm is also creating more skilled jobs, with its expansion swelling its workforce to 50.

Specialising in launch and recovery systems that deploy remotely operated vehicles (ROVs), the company says its new 40,000sq ft plant, built by Darlington-based J and RM Richardson and designed by Darlington's Architects Design Group, means it can carry out larger work for oil, gas and energy clients.

Martin Moon, Subsea's managing director, said it was now working on launch and recovery systems for Subsea7, which has a base in Aberdeen, and Australian ROV maker TMT.

Speaking as the Duke of Gloucester officially opened its headquarters in Faverdale, Darlington, he revealed the company had a deal to supply 16 large suction pile plugs to a huge floating, production, storage and offloading vessel, in South Australia.

It is also sending pipeline clamps for energy supplier Rasgas, which operates the Qatar Al Khaleej Gas Projects that supplies about two billion standard cubic feet of gas a day, carrying out development work alongside Heerema, in the Netherlands, and supplying waterstops, which protect pipelines to US-based offshore company Emas and France’s Technip.

Mr Moon told The Northern Echo: “This expansion allows us to do more and take on larger contracts, and gives us the capabilities to do other things.

“We can assemble complete systems, our floatable tank means we can do more testing, and our cranes give us more height, so we can go through the whole cycle.

“We have a lot of work on and it’s allowed us to take our workforce to 50.

“When I first started, it was down at 32, but we are growing, have three apprentices, and hope our staff number can rise to about 55 next year.

“It was fantastic to have the Duke here to open the factory because it not only highlighted the work we are doing, but the tremendous job the architect and builder both did on the site.”

Mr Moon previously added its former Faverdale base, just yards from its new site, will be retained to carry out equipment storage and some product manufacturing.

During a comprehensive visit, the duke, who unveiled a large floor plaque to celebrate the factory’s opening, said he expected the company’s prowess to deliver it further honours.

He added: “This company has some wonderful products, and I look forward to seeing it on the list of future Queen’s Awards.

“We are all aware of the impact when things go wrong in the industry, so to have such a reliable firm makes a huge difference.”