The recently launched Rail Supply Growth Fund, managed by Finance Birmingham, has provided a funding package to Penso to fast track the company’s production of new composite doors for trains.
The funding package will help Penso to accelerate the innovation and production of their revolutionary composite design of a train door, a concept that they expect to see used on London Underground trains.
The accreditation that the design has achieved will pave the way for use on any rail network in the world.
Based in Coventry, Penso Group is a fast growing technology led business that predominantly provides innovative engineering, build and prototyping alongside cutting edge composite production processes to a variety of industries. It has recently entered the rail sector using its in house engineering and composite manufacturing capabilities.
Penso’s design is the world’s first production capable lightweight composite train door, which has been fully accredited by London Underground for use on their trains. These new composite doors will be significantly lighter in weight and allow quicker door opening and closing times.
Penso has already received support from Finance Birmingham to help them fund previous innovation based projects in the automotive sector. The new GBP2 million support from the Rail Fund has enabled Penso to go from train door concept design to full production capability.
Jack Glonek of Finance Birmingham says: “We are really pleased to provide Penso with a further funding package that can support their ability to fast track the innovation and production of their new composite doors for trains.”
Chris Buckenham, finance director at Penso Group says: “Finance Birmingham is able to support our Business in a manner that matches the market opportunity. They understand our business and the challenging area of moving innovation and R&D through to commercial application. The provisions of flexible funding packages that are otherwise not generally available in the commercial debt market are extremely valuable to our Business model of high investment and introduction of innovative technologies.”
The recently launched Rail Supply Growth Fund is supported by the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS). The fund provides flexible loans of GBP500,000 to GBP2 million to enable both existing and new businesses in the rail supply sector to grow their capabilities and capacity and to help them win new business opportunities from this expanding sector.
Finance Birmingham offers a range of flexible funding packages on a regional and national basis to businesses helping them develop and grow. It is wholly owned by Birmingham City Council.
