Exeter-based Blackhill Engineering, which provides a wide range of engineering services, has been awarded an initial two-year contract by Bruel & Kjaer VTS Ltd to fabricate base frames for high specification testing equipment.

The latter makes acoustic and vibration test and measurement products used by the space, aerospace, defence, automotive, telecoms and mining industries, and this contract marks a major diversification for Blackhill, which is part of the SC Group.

Nick Woods, Bruel & Kjaer VTS manager, said: “As a company that looks for more than just the price of the products we buy, finding Blackhill Engineering was an ideal fit with our business requirements.

"With the support we have seen to date, we are confident that we have found a long-term business partner.” The base frames weigh up to 2.5 tonnes and are for eight different models of vibration test equipment, with each model having up to six different versions.

Blackhill Engineering’s (www.blackhillengineering.co.uk) 28,000ft² of workshop space give it the flexibility to build both large and small components and prototypes and to perform both one-off and volume production.

The company’s markets include nuclear new build and decommissioning, civil engineering and construction, marine and offshore, oil and gas, renewables, quarrying and mineral processing, space, telecoms and automotive.

Recent projects include flood gates and the delivery of components for the Hinkley Point C jetty, which totalled 650 tonnes of steel — and for which it won two EDF Energy HPC Excellence Awards at the end of last year.