Pictured above: Compact Science Systems Technical Director Dennis Leigh, Michelin Development Business Development Manager Dave Smith and Michelin Development Director Mike Cole

Michelin Development's loans fund is proving the best deal in town for businesses after passing the £4m  mark with a loan to a company involved in supplying the oil exploration market.

A £10,000 loan to Staffordshire based Compact Science Systems Ltd - whose Technical Director Dennis Leigh developed part of the technology for the Beagle 2 Mars Lander - has seen the Michelin Development loans fund go past the £4m mark, with 160 approved loans given in total. The cash injection from Michelin Development has been channeled into developing Compact Science Systems Ltd portable spectrometer equipment - the only instrument of its type in the world.

The mass spectrometer is used to explore for oil and gas fields by measuring the isotopes of carbon in the gases produced from exploratory bore holes.

The system can measure a sample on the rig in six minutes instead of six days (a typical laboratory turnaround time) and can be operated remotely from a shore-based control room so that the results can be seen by the geoscientists in real time. Since the analysis of the bore hole gases can signal when the bore hole is about to break through, the quality of the oil field and even if the oil rights to the field are owned by another company, the fast analysis time can save hundreds of thousands of dollars in drilling costs and massively improve efficiency of energy prospecting.

This breakthrough technology is proving a success for the small North Staffordshire-based firm as they expand into the lucrative oil exploration market and take on the established multi-million pound competition with their unique and innovative equipment.

James Leigh, Managing Director of Compact Science, said: "The Michelin Development loans fund is really important to a company like ours. Although we are considered to be an important company for the future  in terms of the innovative, groundbreaking technology we are involved in developing, the support from the traditional lenders does not reflect this.

"There is no consistent investment from the banks or the government in a high tech business such as ours and that is why Michelin Development's readiness to approve funding is so crucial in being able to take our ideas forward and compete in the sectors we are involved with."

Compact Science Systems Ltd was set up five years ago and manufactures isotope ratio mass spectrometers for a range of sectors including the oil industry, the medical sector including commercial labs and the food quality markets. Compact Science's Technical Director Dennis Leigh developed the innovative technology for the UK led Beagle 2 Mars exploration mission in 2003, where the equipment needed to be robust, small and portable, yet still accurate and reliable.

Mike Cole, Director of Michelin Development, said "We are extremely pleased to see the fund go past the £4m mark but more importantly we are extremely proud to have supported the creation of 1800 jobs.

"Supporting progressive, forward thinking companies such as Compact Science who are looking to take their ideas and business to the next level, meeting their obligations to us and the wider business community by creating growth, wealth, and quality sustainable jobs in the region, is what forms  the Michelin Development ethos.

"We  want to create a climate in which other start-ups and enterprises can flourish and in doing so contribute towards successful, local business communities and economies which thrive and grow for many years into the future."

Michelin Development Ltd is dedicated to helping small and medium sized businesses that can create new employment in the many areas of the UK where Michelin has present or historic links with the community. The UK operation, which is part of a European initiative to support entrepreneurs, helps expanding businesses by sourcing competitive loans and offering free business advice. 

0ver the five years since it was formed in the UK, Michelin Development has helped around 130 new enterprises in industries as varied as engineering, construction, IT and fine china. 

Michelin Development in the next year is looking to make further loans available and help even more companies create jobs. 

Michelin has been established in the UK for 100 years and has manufacturing and commercial premises on five sites throughout England, Scotland and Ireland. In addition to tyres the Company produces its famous range of Michelin hotel & restaurant guides and maps.