Glasgow-based maker of diagnostic test kits has built a
manufacturing success based on scientific excellence
One of the most successful science-based companies in Scotland is about to celebrate 40 years of innovation, manufacture and export achievement after beginning its journey into the commercial world as a university spin-out.
Glasgow-based R-Biopharm Rhône, which makes and distributes analytical test kits, is now one of the UK’s most important food and agri-safety companies, guarding against everything from toxins in spices and food to potential hazards in meat, fish and wine to allergens as well as vitamin label verification.
As the Company prepares for a celebratory black tie anniversary dinner this month, it is also looking forward to further expansion into emerging technologies and new international markets.
Though it started out being staffed by very few full-time staff and some post-doctoral students, it now has a full-time complement of 73, a turnover of £17 million and a purpose-built manufacturing and research facility at the West of Scotland Science Park.
Simon Bevis, Managing Director of R-Biopharm Rhône, who joined the firm in 1993, said: “I wonder how many tech firms which started in 1986 are still thriving in a very different world. Less than half, I should think.
“It was a very small operation initially, based in Strathclyde University and the sixth floor of what is now a Premier Inn in Montrose Street, off George Square, with a rickety old lift which you were never sure would make it to the sixth floor.
“When I joined, there were only a handful of people, and everything was done by hand. We turned over £600,000 and lost a million. Some people say it takes courage to go on with figures like that, but it’s only courageous if you know. We just carried on regardless.”
The Company originated as a joint venture between Strathclyde University and Rhône-Poulenc, a former French chemical manufacturer with a pedigree dating back to 1801, whose founder collaborated with famous physicist Marie Curie.
Mr Bevis said that one of the major turning points for the fledgling business came when it was bought by French entrepreneur and former Rhône-Poulenc executive Pierre Belmon, who, along with Managing Director Marcel Bony, put it on a sound financial footing and started to make money.
The second milestone passed in 2000, when M. Belmon sold the business to R-Biopharm AG, the German clinical diagnostics and biotech company, which had the capital to invest, and which doubled the Scottish operation’s turnover overnight.
Mr Bevis, who studied Chemistry at King’s College, London, said: “With the continuing support and investment from R-Biopharm AG, we now make a significant annual profit contribution to the group, which does business across 120 countries.”
He explained that there are three main legs to the R-Biopharm Rhône Ltd. business:
- Products that are made in-house and sold globally, testing for things that should and should not be in foods and feed, such as vitamins and mycotoxins;
- R-Biopharm AG products that are sold to the UK food and agri-businesses;
- Clinical tests sold to organisations like the NHS and centralised testing laboratories to test for viruses and pathogens.
“It’s a good spread of risk,” he said. “There is plenty of competition, but we sell in a lot of countries – the UK, the US, Germany, Turkey, France Italy and India for example – and we are constantly looking at new applications and technologies.
“We’re very interested in novel foods, such as plant-based foods and insect-based petfood – the world is always looking for alternative sources of protein – but they must be subject to the same regulatory regimes and safety checks as traditional food.
“The same applies to nutraceuticals, driven by growing consumer awareness of wellness products. We’re also looking into miniaturisation and automation of testing, to make the processes as easy as possible for our customers.”
Mr Bevis is particularly proud that R-Biopharm Rhône has achieved Investors In People Platinum status, the highest level of accreditation and recognised as the benchmark for people management and leadership.
The Company is proud to be carbon neutral since 2023 and is now verified to the new ISO 14068 standard. It offsets its carbon emissions by purchasing international carbon credits and is committed to becoming net zero target by 2045, in line with Scottish Government targets. Over recent years the business has also been finalists in awards for UK Employer of the Year and Scottish Environmental Business of the Year.
While Mr Bevis is one of the longest-serving employees, he will be namechecking four others at the celebration dinner – Carol Donnelly, Paul Dunnigan, Martin Gallagher and Hazel-Anne Dobbie – who have been in situ for longer than him.
“It says something for the company that it can command this kind of loyalty,” he said, “and we hope the younger staff will continue to feel the same pride and satisfaction in our team achievements as we progress through the coming years.”
