A Warwickshire company has been selected as the only British company to go on a trade mission to Japan.
Bytronic Automation, which is based at the University of Warwick Science Park's Warwick Innovation Centre, is the only firm to be selected from a high number of applications for the EU Gateway to Japan ICT focused trade mission.
The EU mission, which is coordinated in the UK by Birmingham Chamber of Commerce and includes 30 EU companies, will take place in May of this year and is seen as a chance of forging even greater ties between EU business and Japan.
And Bytronic, which specialises in the application of high-performance PC-based factory monitoring systems, is no stranger to securing business abroad.
The firm recently landed a major deal supplying Coca Cola plants in Belgium and Holland with its LineView system which is aimed at the food and drink sector.
That followed similar trade missions to Europe and now the firm hopes the visit to Japan will be equally as profitable.
David Bradley, business development manager with Bytronic, said: "It is a great honour to be selected for this mission. We are the only company from this country going over to Japan and just 30 overall from Europe.
"We do already have links with a major firm in Japan called Shibuya which we will be looking to develop while we are out there.
"It is also a great chance to forge ties with other Japanese - and European companies - while we are there.
"We are living proof of how beneficial it can be to seize business opportunities abroad."
But David said that the firm also had to thank someone closer to home for Bytronic's growth.
The company moved into the University of Warwick Science Park six years ago and has moved into larger offices several times.
It has also grown from two to 12 staff as its unique applications help factories make sure production lines a run efficiently.
John Barnes, manager of the University of Warwick Science Park's Warwick Innovation Centre, said: "This is further great news for Bytronic.
"They are a terrific example of what the University of Warwick Science Park wants to achieve.
"They started out with just a couple of people and have grown and grown and are now conducting business right around the world."
