Third Dimension, the leading supplier of high-precision feature measurement solutions, was recently presented with the Queen’s Award for Enterprise by Dame Janet Trotter, the Lord-lieutenant of Gloucestershire.

The Bristol-based company (www.third.com) won the award (in the innovation category) for GapGun, its hand-held laser-based optical measurement device.

This is its second Queen’s Award; it won the first (in the international trade category) in 2015.

Used to control production quality in automotive, aerospace, turbine and energy industries world-wide, GapGun has increased Third Dimension’s turnover by 50% in the past five years.

It allows the user to accurately measure 3-D surfaces and to record angles, radii and gaps, simply by pulling a trigger; the collected data is analysed to monitor geometric conditions or to identify defects (the user can then take the appropriate action). GapGun provides a fully ‘auditable’ trail of every product measured.

Tim Monks, CEO of Third Dimension, said: “It’s a great honour to have won this coveted award for the second time.

“GapGun is a team effort, and its success is down to the hard work of our staff, plus the loyalty of our customers and partners around the globe — so a big ‘thanks’ to everyone for their on-going support.”