The technical textiles sector gets a competitive edge with R&D tax relief

EDINBURGH, Scotland - Sept. 18, 2013 - PRLog -- The industry is worth at least double that sum in fabrication and downstream processing but, faced with ever-encroaching competition from emerging economies, it needs to continually search for cost-savings and efficiencies.

So it is encouraging to know that un-related companies are focusing on the technical textiles sector, looking at products and applications for textiles and the unique capabilities of their materials and structures, with a view to finding valuable new sources of cash and benefits.

One such company is Jumpstart, the leading UK research and development tax credit specialist, which has already made significant inroads in the technical textiles sector, identifying R&D tax relief sums that could dramatically alter the sector's business advantage in a brutally competitive global market.

Edinburgh based Jumpstart has recovered more than £1 million in R&D tax relief for just seven specialist companies and has formed long-term relationships with several of them.

The amounts of relief involved in successful claims vary widely, but Jumpstart has a 98.6% claim success rate. Its list of successes in the sector so far include ACS Clothing, Bar One, The Hawick Cashmere Company, John Spencer Textiles, Johnstons of Elgin, JT Inglis and Morton Young and Borland.

In recognition of the complexity of the sector, Jumpstart's technical analysts, who are vital to the success of submissions to HMRC, are typically educated to PhD level. Its business analysts have uniformly impeccable business experience and UK-wide contacts.

After guiding the process through HMRC, Jumpstart secures, almost without fail, a tax benefit for the company in the form of a payable cash credit, a tax rebate, or an enhanced deduction that can be used against future profits

David Collinge, Managing Director of John Spencer Textiles, said: "It was immediately clear to us that Jumpstart knows exactly how HMRC works. Its submission is less likely to raise questions and potential queries are ironed out before the submission is made. This would have taken up a lot of our time if we had to do it ourselves, so it was a relief not to have to think about it.

"Jumpstart’s analysts were able quickly to grasp the technicalities of our projects and translate them into a form that HMRC were happy to work with. After having been through the process with Jumpstart, we realised that we do more R&D work than we ever thought we did! We have been able to reclaim a substantial amount of tax."

Brian Williamson, managing director at Jumpstart, said: "The technical textiles sector has seen some of Britain's most interesting innovations in the international arena and it is extremely important for it to be encouraged and rewarded through R&D schemes."

For further information about Jumpstart, contact Brian Williamson, managing director (Scotland) at Jumpstart, 6 Atholl Crescent, Edinburgh EH3 8HA. t: +44 (0) 131 240 2900. f: +44 (0) 131 226 4506. e: helpinghand@jumpstartuk.co.uk w: www.jumpstartuk.co.uk.