A County Down metal roofing firm has bolstered sales nine-fold after receiving help from Invest NI.

Befab Ltd has also boosted exports sales of its roofing products in the agricultural and construction markets.

The Comber-based firm invested over £100,000 to upgrade its IT systems and recruit a sales manager for the Republic of Ireland.

Invest NI, with support from the European Regional Development Fund, offered over £30,000 towards the investment projects.

Managing Director Mervyn Elliott said: "For some time we have seen the Republic of Ireland as a major potential growth market, with our range of versatile metal roofing products proving particularly popular in the agricultural market. To capitalise on this, we are establishing a permanent sales presence in that area so that we can tap into the increasing interest in our products.

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"We are also the only supplier in Ireland to provide an online ordering and tracking service. Feedback from clients on these improvements has been extremely positive and we are now well positioned to further build both our reputation and our export sales following the success of the last year," he said.

Kevin McCann, Invest NI's Director of Transport, Construction and Tourism, said: "The current economic climate is presenting strong export opportunities for local companies, thanks in some part to the strength of the Euro against Sterling.

"Befab has invested heavily in its export sales and marketing capability whilst also improving its processes and implementing efficiency savings. These improvements, coupled with its quality product offering, have made it an even more attractive supplier to clients in the lucrative RoI market."

(PR/JM)