From Tamworth to 40+ countries:
PI-KEM featured in parliamentary report celebrating UK exporters
Read the full report here
Sometimes it's worth stopping to think about just how far a conversation can travel.
From our home in Tamworth, we work with researchers, universities, and organisations in more than 40 countries across Europe, North and South America, Asia, Africa, and Australia.
Now that international reach has been recognised in The Power of Place, a report from the All-Party Parliamentary Group for International Trade and Investment celebrating British SME exporters.
Local roots, international research
The idea behind The Power of Place is an interesting one.
Britain's international success doesn't only begin in its biggest cities or largest companies. It also starts in towns and communities around the country, where smaller businesses are building expertise and relationships that reach much further.
We were selected to represent Tamworth in the report.
For us, that's particularly meaningful because PI-KEM has always combined two things: strong roots here in Tamworth and a very international outlook.
Today, we export to more than 40 countries and support scientific research across areas including nanotechnology, photonics and optoelectronics, hydrogen technology, and energy research.
But the number of countries only tells part of the story.
Behind every shipment is a researcher, engineer, or technical team working towards an objective.
That's where our team's product knowledge becomes important.
Sometimes the requirement is straightforward, but often a researcher needs something very specific, and our job is to understand the application, talk through the options, and help identify or source the right material.
It's one of the reasons relationships have always mattered so much to us.
Supporting research beyond Tamworth
The report also highlights our work supporting the development of advanced battery pilot-line facilities, including projects with University College London (UCL) and the Łukasiewicz Research Network in Poland.
It's a good example of what international working can look like for a specialist science business.
Knowledge, materials, and equipment cross borders because research does too.
As interest in energy storage continues to grow, we've also been broadening the battery research toolkit we can offer to researchers working in this area.
And that's just one part of the research our team encounters. On any given day, conversations might involve thin films, nanotechnology, photonics, hydrogen or another specialist application.
A team achievement
There's another part of the report that we're especially pleased to see recognised - our people.
PI-KEM has always operated as a team, and we've worked hard to create a business where colleagues and the people we work with know they're valued.
Our international growth wouldn't have happened without that.
The recognition comes after we expanded our Tamworth offices in 2024 and were named Tamworth Business of the Year in 2026. Seeing PI-KEM now represented in a national report on British SME exporters is another moment we're very proud to share with the whole team.
The report makes the case for helping more SMEs explore international markets. It notes that only around 314,000 of the UK's 5.5 million SMEs currently export.
Our own experience has shown us what's possible when specialist knowledge, good relationships, and curiosity aren't limited by geography.
We're still based in Tamworth. Our conversations just travel a little further these days.
Read the full report here
