36 | Tees Business
ROBOT
REVOLUTION
HOW TEES TECH
FIRM IS MAKING THE
IMPOSSIBLE POSSIBLE
Tees Business learns more
about the robotics firm hailed
as the North-East’s leading
innovators just 12 months
after launching
A
s an expert in mechatronics, it’s
fair to say that Jamie Marsay
knows a thing or two about
robotic technology. But even he
didn’t imagine the innovation of a robotic
autonomous system would take off at quite
the pace it has.
The Hyve is basically a robotic scientist
– an artificial intelligence system designed
to discover advancements in formulation
chemistry and biotechnology.
The robotic autonomous system allows
companies to build their own research
scientist or production line operative. The
modular system uses collaborative robotics
and machine intelligence to allow it to
interact with humans to undertake tasks that
are not normally possible or for humans to
undertake.
And Marsay has used all of his vast
experience and expertise to lead the robotic
innovation since the formation of Applied
Scientific Technologies (AST) midway through
2017.
“Sometimes I have to pinch myself
because it’s so much better than I originally
thought it would be when we first set out on
this venture,” he admits.
Stokesley-based AST is forecasting a 10-
fold increase in turnover to £4m within two
years.
The firm is currently preparing field trials
Robot masters -
Applied Scientific
Technologies
directors Lee
Raywood, Garry
Lofthouse and
Jamie Marsay.
that will see its “revolutionary” custom-
built robotic automated system go into full
production within months.
Marsay and fellow directors Garry
Lofthouse and Lee Raywood are targeting
sales of 50 a year of the patent-pending
innovation by 2020.
Just a year after launching, AST has already
won orders from corporate global giants –
with many more “banging at the door” – for
The Hyve.
Such is the ground-breaking advancements
of the autonomous robotic system compared
to anything else available on the global
market that two of the same world-leading
firms have helped to fund research and
design on the cutting edge technology.
AST’s first sale was to the European HQ of
a multinational personal care company who
plan to roll out the The Hyve product across
their global operations.
But global innovators within the health
care, pharmaceuticals, food and beverage,
life sciences, personal and household care
markets are queueing up to be next.
Now Applied Scientific Technologies is
set to give The Hyve its European launch in
September before introducing the industry-
transforming technology to the rest of the
world in 2019.
Understandably excited by the rapid
progress of the firm’s first product, Marsay
says: “We’ve been told by people in the
know that it’s unbelievable and that it’s a step
change but the best compliment I ever get is
that it’s too good to be true.
“We’re making the unbelievable
believable.”
Along with staff at established sister
company Applied Integration, AST’s directors
are working shoulder-to-shoulder with
forward-thinking global giants including
digital pioneers Siemens UK as their strategic
partners.
Marsay adds: “These early adopters of
our technology can see where collaborative
robotics and deep learning is going within the
scientific market.
“They have paid for The Hyve’s beta model
so they can work on the field trials for this
innovative product, knowing it will be the first
of its kind.