Quarterlytics / Auto - Parts / Surface Transforms Plc / FY2011 Annual Report

Surface Transforms Plc
Annual Report 2011

SCE · LSE
Claim this profile
Ticker SCE
Exchange LSE
Sector
Industry Auto - Parts
Employees 11-50
← All annual reports
FY2011 Annual Report · Surface Transforms Plc
Loading PDF…
Surface Transforms plc

Registered number 3769702

Annual Report and
Financial Statements

for the year ended 31 May 2011

Annual Report and Financial Statements 
for the year ended 31 May 2011

Contents

2

3

6

8

Highlights

Chairman’s statement

Chief executive’s report

Directors report

11 Report on directors remuneration

13

Statement of directors responsibilities

14

Independent auditors report

15

Statement of total comprehensive income

16

Statement of changes in equity

17 Balance sheet

18 Cash flow statement

19 Notes to the financial statements

34 Company information and advisers

35 Notice of Annual General Meeting

Surface Transforms plc
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
1

Highlights
for the year ended 31 May 2008

● Revenue increased by 7.3% to £863,439 (2010: £804,800).

●

Losses after taxation £870,961 (2010: £536,019). 

● Cash position as at 31 May 2011 of £615,145 (2010: £414,513).

● Order book plus contracted sales for delivery by 31 May 2012 of £568,000

(2010: £521,996).

●

●

Fundraising of £1.2 million net of expenses, in November 2010 at 17 pence
per share. 

In  March  2011  the  Company  entered  into  a  forward  contractual  supply
agreement  with  one  of  its  main  clients,  Mov’IT  International. The  contract
expires  on  31  December  2014  and  provides  for  the  sale  of  ceramic  brake
discs with a minimum value of approximately £2.7m (€3.1 million) over the
contract term.

● During October 2010, the Company signed a Development Agreement with
a  major  US  manufacturer  of  wheels  and  brake  systems  for  the  aircraft
industry. 

Surface Transforms plc
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
2

Chairman’s statement
for the year ended 31 May 2008

In  the  year  ended  31  May  2011  the  Company  achieved  a  7.3%  increase  in  revenues  to  £863,439  (2010:
£804,800). These revenue levels although higher than last year were lower than expected or budgeted. Losses
before taxation for the period were higher at £973,888 (2010: £747,091). Losses after taxation for the period
were also higher at £870,961 (2010: £536,019).

Highlights for the 12 month period were:

● During  October  2010,  the  Company  signed  a  Development Agreement  with  a  major  US  manufacturer  of
wheels and brake systems for the aircraft industry. Over the past 24 months, the Company has undertaken a
series of brake disc trials with this client and this agreement formalises the business relationship between the
two companies. This is initially a development agreement and due to the nature of projects of this type, it is
difficult to predict timetables and success thresholds. Nevertheless, both parties are focused on completing
the development test programmes and, should the Company’s carbon ceramic product pass all test criteria,
the business will move to commercial supply.

● During March 2011 the Company entered into a new supply agreement with one of its main clients, Mov’IT
International. This contract expires on 31 December 2014 and provides for the sale of ceramic brake discs
with a minimum value of approximately £2.7 million (€3.1 million) over the contract term.

● Development costs were substantially higher than the previous year due to increased costs associated with
new  testing  work  which  was  not  funded  by  the  customer,  but  which  was  necessary  for  automotive  and
aircraft brake evaluation programmes. The Board anticipates that such costs will be considerably reduced in
the coming financial year.

●

In  March  2011  we  commenced  a  new  level  of  commercial  partnership  with Alcon  Components  Ltd,  an
existing client, for the supply of carbon ceramic brake discs for selected ranges of high performance cars for
both road and track use. The first application is the supply of ceramic brake discs for the Nissan GTR for their
Asian markets and distributors. Alcon is one of the premier UK based brake systems suppliers to both the
automotive OEM and aftermarket.

● During November 2010, the Company raised £1.19 million, net of expenses, by way of a Placing and Open
Offer to shareholders. The new ordinary shares were issued at 17 pence per share. The additional funds have
and will be used to increase production capacity and tooling and reduce the direct cost of manufacturing
carbon ceramic discs as well as to support ongoing working capital.

FINANCIAL REVIEW
In  the  year  ended  31  May  2011  revenues  were  £863,439  (2010:  £804,800). This  7.3%  increase  in  revenues,
although  lower  than  expected,  was  achieved  with  no  sales  of  discs  to  the  US  brake  system  supplier  for  the
development  of  a  next  generation  military  vehicle.  Such  sales,  at  approximately  £250,000,  were  significant
during  the  financial  year  ended  31  May  2010. These  revenues  have  been  replaced  by  sales  to  commercial
automotive clients. The Board does not anticipate selling any further discs to the US military development project
until late 2012, by which time we hope that the brake trials will have been completed satisfactorily. It is our
understanding that our ceramic discs have performed well to date during testing; there have been no breakages
or failures, which is very encouraging but consequently there have been no replacement disc sales.

The order book and contracted sales for the year ending 31 May 2012 amounts to £568,000 (31 May 2010:
£521,996).  The  contracted  sales,  expected  to  be  in  excess  of  £280,000,  relate  to  a  three  year,  forward
contractual supply agreement the Company entered into in March 2011 with one of its main clients, Mov’IT
International.

Surface Transforms plc
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
3

Chairman’s statement
continued

Losses  after  taxation  were  £870,961  (2010:  £536,019). There  are  two  main  reasons  for  the  increased  losses: 
(i)  an  increase  in  research  and  development  costs  which  was  not  funded  by  clients. These  were  incurred  to
evaluate brake discs for a number of new car platforms and for an aircraft brake and (ii) an unexpected reduction
in R&D tax credits of £108,000. Hitherto, annual tax credits of approximately £200,000 have been received by
the Company to cover R&D activity. 

Looking  ahead  our  R&D  tax  credit  advisers,  Baker Tilly,  expect  tax  credits  to  continue  to  be  received  by  the
Company and within a range of £150,000 to £170,000. Research costs, not funded by customers, are expected
to fall back sharply to more historic levels in the financial year ending 31 May 2012. 

The Company has taken additional steps to reduce its cost base and savings of approximately £170,000 p.a for
the year commencing 1 June 2011 should be achieved.

Loss per share was 3.09 pence (2010: loss 2.33 pence).

The Company had a cash balance of £615,145 at 31 May 2011 (31 May 2010: £414,513).

Shareholders funds were £1,489,607 (31 May 2010: £1,079,133).

DIRECTORS AND STAFF
Professor David Clark, one of the four founders of the Company in 1992, will not be seeking re election as a non
executive director at the AGM in October this year. David is one of the UK’s leading and most respected scientists
in carbon fibre and carbon ceramic technology and he is an adviser to a number of institutions on this subject
including the Ministry of Defence. He co-founded the Company as a spin out from ICI where he had been a
director in charge of Development and New Technologies. We shall miss his regular counsel at the Board but
we shall continue to have access to his advice.

Dr. Geoff Gould has reached retirement age and has recently reduced his executive status from full time to part
time and he intends to retire fully this year. Geoff is responsible for sales to the aircraft brake and rocket motor
markets and joined in 2001 from Honeywell where he was a senior executive in the carbon fibre business. I am
pleased, however, that we shall continue to have access to his experience and counsel on a consultancy basis
whenever required going forward.

With the retirement of David and Geoff during 2011, the Company is very fortunate that David Bundred has
today agreed to join the Board as a Non Executive director. David is a chartered engineer and has had a senior
and very successful career at some of the UK’s leading industrial businesses. His commercial experience is highly
relevant to the aircraft and automotive brake markets that the Company addresses. During a 24 year career at
Lucas his appointments included General Manager of the Brake Controls and the Truck Brakes Divisions and
between  1993-1999  he  was  a  Divisional  Managing  Director  and  latterly  Chief  Operating  Officer  of  Lucas
Aerospace. Until he retired in 2005, he was CEO of TMD Friction Group GmbH in Germany, a large, global
supplier of brake pads to the automobile industry.

I would like to thank all my colleagues, management and staff alike, for their hard work and dedication over the
past year. It is a credit to all staff that the Company has again maintained its ISO 9001 accreditation.

Surface Transforms plc
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
4

Chairman’s statement
continued

OUTLOOK
The 2011 financial year was disappointing for management as we had expected revenues to be much higher
together with lower development costs. Nevertheless, the sales achievement should not be underestimated given
difficult market conditions generally, but also as the growth was achieved in spite of there being no sales to the
next  generation  military  project  in  the  USA.  Surface  Transforms  is  one  of  only  two  worldwide  suppliers  of
ceramic brake discs and, in light of broader demand for such brake systems, we expect further expansion of our
business despite the difficulties in forecasting.

We have consistently strived to reduce our sales break even levels with lower overheads, increased productivity
and  programmes  to  reduce  unit  product  costs.  Current  estimates  indicate  that  cash  breakeven  occurs  at
approximately £1.5 million of revenues given the current product mix.

I said last year that the challenges facing management had moved from technology based issues to operating
matters relating to the management of working capital, production and the investment in additional process
capacity  to  accommodate  the  expected  growth  in  revenues.  These  challenges  continue  and  we  have
commenced  on  process  capacity  expansion  as  a  priority  with  detailed  discussions  currently  ongoing  with
selected suppliers. 

Looking ahead to May 2012, although the euro-zone economy appears fraught with challenges we do not expect
that the banking and sovereign debt problems will materially affect our automotive clients in Sweden, Germany
and  the  European  racing  industry. The  deficit  reduction  programmes  of  the  main  European  economies  have
slowed defence spending and so our rocket motor development revenues are expected to remain subdued.

We anticipate lower losses for both the first half and also for the full year compared to 2010/11. We are focussed
on  the  business  achieving  cash  breakeven  as  soon  as  possible  and  believe  that  increasing  revenues  from  our
existing customer base will take us to that target. The high performance and race automotive sector in Europe is
expected to dominate our revenue profile in 2012 and there is the possibility that the supply of ceramic brake
components to the aircraft sector in the USA may commence in late calendar year 2012. 

Kevin D’Silva
Chairman

4 August 2011

Surface Transforms plc
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
5

Chief executive’s report
for the year ended 31 May 2008

The Company expected higher revenues from the automotive market in terms of development programmes and
increased  market  demand,  and  to  maintain  development  sales  revenue  from  its  aerospace  and  defence
components clients. It is always difficult predicting the adoption curve of new technologies and the anticipated
demand from the automotive market, although growing, was slower than expected and the revenues from the
aerospace and defence markets below expectations.

AUTOMOTIVE – HIGH PERFORMANCE AND RACE CAR BRAKE SYSTEMS
The revenues from our automotive clients increased significantly in the year, more than enough to compensate
for the previous year’s sales of carbon ceramic product to the US brake system supplier for the development of
the next generation military vehicle (sales in excess of £250,000 which was non-recurring), and for the fall in
aerospace and defence component development revenues. Whilst total sales grew by 7.3%, this was below the
Board’s expectations.

Feedback from the US brake system supplier for the development of the next generation military vehicle has been
very positive with the Company’s products performing well. There have been no issues to date, which is very
encouraging.

Revenues  with  Koenigsegg  and  the  North American  aftermarket  have  continued  and  the  Company’s  revenue
growth has been strong, especially in sales to the European aftermarket with our European distribution partner
Mov’IT. The  Company  was  pleased  to  sign  a  new  supply  agreement  with  Mov’IT  in  March  2011. The  new
agreement covers the period to 31 December 2014 and provides for minimum sales to Mov’IT of approximately
£2.7 million (€3.1 million) over the term.

Secondly, revenues in the racing market also grew with the Company’s products being recognised as world class
by our customer, a leading global brake system supplier. 

The  Company  is  focused  on  winning  new  business  and  in  early  2011  began  a  commercial  partnership  with
Alcon Components Ltd, a leading UK based performance brake system supplier to both automotive OEM’s and
the aftermarket. The first commercial application to come out of the partnership is a new ceramic brake upgrade
kit  for  the  Nissan  GTR  for  Alcon’s  Asian  market. The  Company  believes  as  the  partnership  develops,  further
systems will be produced and commercialised.

Alcon Components Ltd is also a member of the Company’s collaborative R&D project, funded by the Technology
Strategy Board. The project continues to progress on track with promising results which are of interest to both
the automotive partners Alcon and Bentley Motor Cars and rail partner Faiveley Transport.

AEROSPACE AND DEFENCE BRAKE DISCS AND COMPONENTS
The Company has worked on a number of development programs in these markets. The development with a US
brake system supplier for a carbon ceramic brake disc continues with the signing of a development agreement
in  October  2010.  Our  client’s  initial  focus  had  been  on  the  delivery  of  a  new  technology  solution  for  one
particular  application,  although  they  believe  the  technology  can  be  applied  to  other  applications  which  they
currently supply and have therefore broadened the scope of the development. To support the development the
customer has agreed to fund the future development activities and the first of such orders has now been received.
Both companies are committed to completing the technical development and achieving a commercial solution
as quickly as possible.

Surface Transforms carbon ceramic technology is uniquely positioned to deliver affordable, high performance (in
terms of extended life and reduced mass) rocket components.

Surface Transforms plc
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
6

Chief executive’s report
continued

We have successfully completed the final year of a three year development programme with MBDA, a world
leading missile manufacturer jointly owned by BAE Systems, EADS and Finmecanica and sponsored by the UK
and  French  Ministries  of  Defence.  The  objective  of  the  programme  was  to  evaluate  our  proprietary  carbon
ceramic  technology  for  its  use  in  rocket  component  applications.  The  development  work  delivered  very
promising  results  in  terms  of  material  characteristic  and  cost  to  manufacture,  confirming  its  potential  use  as
affordable,  high  performance  rocket  components.  MBDA  have  also  identified  a  number  of  potential  rocket
components the technology could be applied too. Similarly the development program with Microturbo, one of
the world leaders in gas turbine applications for missile propulsion has delivered encouraging results during its
first year of a planned two year programme. 

In the current environment of government deficit reduction programmes, the effect on the MoD and its suppliers
is  to  add  a  high  degree  of  uncertainty  to  development  funds,  making  the  future  of  both  of  these  promising
programmes unclear. Consequently revenues were lower than expected this year and we anticipate this situation
will remain uncertain until at least the early part of next year.

OPERATIONS
Affordability and supply capability are the key requirements for our customers. The current economic backdrop
has seen significant price increases from some of the Company’s suppliers. The Company is working to minimise
these cost pressures both through the supply chain and within the Company’s process technology, with some
success. These activities, coupled with a significant increase in automotive development testing necessary for our
automotive customers this year, led to much higher development costs than the Company had anticipated. Now
complete, the Board is confident these costs will be greatly reduced in this new financial year. 

With  the  growth  in  the  automotive  market  expected  to  continue,  the  company  has  established  a  capacity
expansion  plan  which  will  address  the  key  bottlenecks  through  process  improvement  and  additional  process
plant.

PEOPLE
The Company continues to have a strong and focused senior management team who have supported the business
constantly during the year, showing tremendous commitment to driving the Company forward to achieving it
goals.

I would like to thank all my colleagues for their dedication and hard work during the year.

Kevin Johnson
Chief Executive

4 August 2011

Surface Transforms plc
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
7

Directors report
for the year ended 31 May 2008

The Directors present their annual report and the audited financial statements for the year ended 31 May 2011.

PRINCIPAL ACTIVITY
The principal activity of the Company during the year was the development and manufacture of carbon fibre
reinforced ceramic product (CFRC) for automotive disc brake and aircraft and rocket component applications.

BUSINESS REVIEW
A  review  of  the  Company’s  activities  during  the  year  is  provided  within  the  financial  review  section  of  the
Chairman’s statement on page 3.

KEY RISKS AND UNCERTAINTIES 
As  in  previous  years  the  principal  risk  faced  by  the  Company  is  considered  to  be  the  speed  at  which  our
customers and potential customers adopt the new ceramic disc technology. Indications in the automotive market
are  that  the  technology  continues  to  be  well  received  and  is  being  adopted  over  an  increasing  number  of
vehicles. This risk is constantly assessed by monitoring the level of enquiries and orders for both the Company
and industry wide. In addition the Company faces the continuing uncertainty created by the current economic
climate, particularly within the automotive sector.

KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS
The Directors continue to monitor the business internally with a number of performance indicators: order intake,
sales  output,  profitability  and  manufacturing  cost  of  automotive  discs.  The  Company  has  met  its  revised
performance targets in each of these areas – please see Chairman’s statement for more details:

●

●

Turnover £863,439 (2010: £804,800)

Losses after taxation £870,961 (2010: £536,019) 

● Order book of £568,000 as at 31 May 2011 (2010: £521,996)

The Company produces an annual business plan and full monthly forecasts detailing sales, profitability and cash
flow to help monitor business performance going forward.

FUTURE DEVELOPMENTS
In the short term, the Company aims to continue with its corporate strategy which is to exploit its technologies
in carbon fibre reinforced ceramics by:

●

●

establishing  contract  development  opportunities  and  collaborations  with  national  and  multi-national
customers in the aerospace and automotive industries; and 

expanding commercial sales of CFRC products.

RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT
The majority of the Company’s staff are employed in research activities which are concentrated on the ongoing
identification  of  new  products  and  applications  for  carbon  fibre  reinforced  ceramic  friction  and  non-friction
materials.

PROPOSED DIVIDEND AND TRANSFER TO RESERVES
The loss for the year after taxation amounted to £870,961 (2010: £536,019). The Directors do not recommend
the payment of a dividend.

POLICY AND PRACTICE ON PAYMENT OF PAYABLES 
It  is  the  Company’s  policy  that  payments  to  suppliers  are  made  in  accordance  with  the  terms  and  conditions
agreed  between  the  Company  and  its  suppliers,  providing  that  all  trading  terms  and  conditions  have  been
complied with. The Company does not follow any code or standard on payment practice.

At the year end, there were 55 days (2010: 64 days) purchases in trade payables.

Surface Transforms plc
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
8

Directors report
continued

POLITICAL AND CHARITABLE DONATIONS
The Company made no political or charitable donations during the year (2010: £nil).

DIRECTORS AND DIRECTORS’ INTERESTS
The Directors who held office during the year were as follows:

K D’Silva* (Chairman)
Dr K Johnson (Chief Executive)
Professor DT Clark*
Dr G Gould
KM Baker OBE* 
RD Gledhill*

The Company Secretary is GV Hall.

*denotes non-executive Director.

The  Directors  retiring  by  rotation  are  K  D’Silva  and  K  Johnson  who,  being  eligible,  offers  themselves  for 
re-election. DT Clark has decided to retire from the Board. The Board wishes to record its thanks to Mr. Clark for
his considerable contribution since the inception of the Company and wishes him every success in the future.

The Directors who held office at the end of the financial year had the following interests in the ordinary shares
of the Company according to the register of Directors’ interests:

KM Baker OBE
Professor DT Clark
K D’Silva
RG Gledhill
Dr G Gould 
Dr K Johnson

% of issued
share capital at
end of year

Number of £0.01 ordinary shares
Interest at
start of year

Interest at
end of year

1.0%
3.1%
1.0%
22.2%
0.0%
0.4%

327,375
979,661
328,986
7,072,223
4,350
124,000

275,000
979,661
311,986
7,072,223
4,350
124,000

According to the register of Directors’ interests, no rights to subscribe for shares in or debentures of the Company
were granted to any of the Directors or their immediate families, or exercised by them during the financial year,
except as disclosed in the report on Directors’ remuneration on pages 11 and 12. 

The Directors benefited from qualifying third party indemnity provisions in place during the financial year and
at the date of this report. 

SUBSTANTIAL SHAREHOLDERS
In addition to the Directors’ interests noted above, the Directors are aware of the following who were interested
in 3% or more of the Company’s equity as at 6 July 2011:

Registered holding 

JM Finn Nominees Limited
Pershing Nominees Limited
Giltspur Nominees Limited
HSBC Gobal Custody Nominee (UK)

Number of
ordinary 
shares

5,703,117
2,506,000
1,642,801
1,471,875

% of issued
share 
capital

17.9%
7.9%
5.2%
4.6%

Surface Transforms plc
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
9

Directors report
continued

CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
Surface  Transforms  plc  is  committed  to  maintaining  high  standards  of  corporate  governance.  The  Company
complies with the Combined Code as modified by the recommendations of the Quoted Companies Alliance to
the extent the Directors consider appropriate, given the size of the Company, its current stage of development
and the constitution of the Board. 

The Board has appointed an Audit Committee whose primary role is to review the Company’s interim and annual
financial statements before submission to the Board for approval. The Board has also appointed a Remuneration
Committee,  which  is  responsible  for  reviewing  executive  remuneration  and  performance. The  Remuneration
Committee is made up of four non-executive Directors, Professor David Clark, Kevin D’Silva, Ken Baker OBE
and Richard Gledhill. The Audit Committee is made up of three non-executive Directors, Professor David Clark,
Kevin  D’Silva  and  Ken  Baker  OBE.  Details  of  the  Remuneration  Committee  are  disclosed  in  the  report  on
Directors’ remuneration on pages 11 and 12.

GOING CONCERN
The  financial  statements  have  been  prepared  on  a  going  concern  basis  which  the  Directors  believe  to  be
appropriate. The Company incurred a net loss of £870,961 during the year however the Directors are satisfied,
based on detailed cash flow projections, that sufficient cash is available to meet the Company’s needs as they
fall  due  for  at  least  12  months  from  the  date  of  signing  the  accounts.  Revenues  are  expected  to  continue  to
increase in the coming years resulting in the Company becoming profitable in due course. 

The  Directors  believe  that  the  Company  is  well  placed  to  manage  its  business  risks  successfully  despite  the
current uncertain economic outlook. After making enquiries, the Directors have a reasonable expectation that
the  Company  has  adequate  resources  to  continue  in  operational  existence  for  the  foreseeable  future.
Accordingly, they continue to adopt the going concern basis in preparing the annual report and accounts.

DISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION TO AUDITORS
The Directors who held office at the date of approval of this Directors’ report confirm that, so far as they are each
aware, there is no relevant audit information of which the Company’s auditors are unaware, and each Director
has taken all the steps that he ought to have taken as a Director to make himself aware of any relevant audit
information and to establish that the Company’s auditors are aware of that information. 

AUDITORS
In  accordance  with  Section  489  of  the  Companies  Act  2006,  a  resolution  for  the  re-appointment  of  KPMG 
Audit Plc as auditors of the Company is to be proposed at the forthcoming Annual General Meeting.

FUND RAISING
The Company secured a fundraising of £1,188,150, net of expenses, during November 2010 by the issue of new
ordinary shares at 17 pence per share to assist with working capital needs and enable investment in additional
plant and equipment necessary to significantly increase in house production capacity and reduce the direct cost
of manufacturing carbon ceramic discs.

By order of the Board

K D’Silva
Chairman

4 August 2011

Unit 4 Olympic Park
Poole Hall Road
Ellesmere Port
Cheshire CH66 1ST

Surface Transforms plc
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
10

Report on directors remuneration
for the year ended 31 May 2008

POLICY ON EXECUTIVE DIRECTORS’ REMUNERATION
The Remuneration Committee comprises of Kevin D’Silva, Professor David Clark, Ken Baker OBE and Richard
Gledhill.

The Remuneration Committee is responsible for reviewing and determining the Company’s policy on executive
remuneration (including the grant of options under the Share Option Scheme) and ensuring compliance with and
implementation by the Company, as far as reasonably practicable, of the recommendations and guidelines of the
Combined Code. Executive remuneration packages are designed to ensure the Company’s executive Directors
and senior executives are fairly rewarded for their individual contributions to the Company.

FEES FOR NON-EXECUTIVE DIRECTORS
The fees for non-executive Directors are determined by the Board. The non-executive Directors are not involved
in the decisions about their own remuneration.

DIRECTORS’ REMUNERATION
Set  out  below  is  a  summary  of  the  fees  and  emoluments  received  by  all  Directors  for  the  year  or,  where
applicable, period of office:

Executive directors
Dr K Johnson
Dr G Gould

Non-executive directors
K D’Silva
Professor DT Clark
KM Baker OBE
RD Gledhill

2011
£

2010
£

96,512
35,223

131,735

25,530
18,000
18,200
10,500

72,230

116,587
36,032

152,619

27,000
18,000
18,000
12,000

75,000

203,965

227,619

With  the  exception  of  Kevin  Johnson,  none  of  the  Directors  received  pension  contributions  in  respect  of  their
office. In addition to the emoluments received, as stated above, Kevin Johnson received £22,750 (2010: £10,000)
in respect of pension contributions.

DIRECTORS’ INTERESTS
Details of any contracts in which a Director has a material interest are disclosed in note 17.

None of the Directors received any remuneration or benefits under long term incentive schemes.

Surface Transforms plc
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
11

Report on directors remuneration
continued

SHARE OPTIONS
The  Company  operates  a  share  incentive  scheme. All  options  are  granted  at  the  discretion  of  the  Board. The
number of options granted, date of grant, exercise price and exercise periods under the scheme are set out below. 

None of the Directors exercised options during the year. Directors’ options outstanding and the options which
were granted, surrendered and expired during the year are as follows:

Holding

Number 
of Share 
options
expired,
waived
the year or lapsed

on Granted
during

1 June
2010

Director

Date of
Grant

18/04/2007
Dr G Gould
30/06/2008
Dr G Gould
22/09/2008
Dr G Gould
01/03/2010
Dr G Gould
18/04/2007
Dr K Johnson
30/06/2008
Dr K Johnson
22/09/2008
Dr K Johnson
01/03/2010
Dr K Johnson
18/04/2007
Prof. DT Clark
KA D’Silva
18/04/2007
KM Baker OBE 18/04/2007

50,000
86,000
21,219
20,000
100,000
288,000
481,707
345,000
15,000
50,000
15,000

1,471,926

–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–

–

Holding
on
31 May
2011

50,000
86,000
21,219
20,000
100,000
288,000
481,707
345,000
15,000
50,000
15,000

Exercise
Price

£0.21
£0.18
£0.19
£0.09
£0.21
£0.18
£0.19
£0.09
£0.21
£0.21
£0.21

Exercise Period

Expiry
Date

18/04/10-18/04/17 18/04/2017
30/06/11-30/06/18 30/06/2018
22/09/11-22/09/18 22/09/2018
01/03/13-01/03/20 01/03/2020
18/04/10-18/04/17 18/04/2017
30/06/11-30/06/18 30/06/2018
22/09/11-22/09/18 22/09/2018
01/03/13-01/03/20 01/03/2020
18/04/10-18/04/17 18/04/2017
18/04/10-18/04/17 18/04/2017
18/04/10-18/04/17 18/04/2017

–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–

– 1,471,926

The market price of the shares at 31 May 2011 was 14 pence and during the year varied from 11.9 pence to 
25.7 pence.

By order of the Board

K D’Silva
Chairman

4 August 2011

Unit 4 Olympic Park
Poole Hall Road
Ellesmere Port
Cheshire CH66 1ST

Surface Transforms plc
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
12

Statement of directors responsibilities
in respect of the annual report and the financial statements

The Directors are responsible for preparing the Annual Report and the Financial Statements in accordance with
applicable law and regulations.

Company law requires the Directors to prepare financial statements for each financial year. Under that law they
have elected to prepare the financial statements in accordance with IFRSs as adopted by the EU and applicable
law.

Under company law the Directors must not approve the financial statements unless they are satisfied that they
give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the Company and of the profit or loss of the Company for that
period. In preparing these financial statements, the Directors are required to:

●

select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently;

● make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent;

●

●

state whether they have been prepared in accordance with IFRSs as adopted by the EU; and

prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the
Company will continue in business.

The Directors are responsible for keeping adequate accounting records that are sufficient to show and explain
the  Company’s  transactions  and  disclose  with  reasonable  accuracy  at  any  time  the  financial  position  of  the
Company and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Companies Act 2006. They
have general responsibility for taking such steps as are reasonably open to them to safeguard the assets of the
Company and to prevent and detect fraud and other irregularities.

The  Directors  are  responsible  for  the  maintenance  and  integrity  of  the  corporate  and  financial  information
included  on  the  Company’s  website.  Legislation  in  the  UK  governing  the  preparation  and  dissemination  of
financial statements may differ from legislation in other jurisdictions.

Surface Transforms plc
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
13

Independent auditors report 
to the members of Surface Transforms plc

We have audited the financial statements of Surface Transforms plc for the year ended 31 May 2011 set out on
pages 15 to 33. The financial reporting framework that has been applied in their preparation is applicable law
and International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRSs) as adopted by the EU.

This report is made solely to the Company’s members, as a body, in accordance with Chapter 3 of Part 16 of the
Companies Act 2006. Our audit work has been undertaken so that we might state to the Company’s members
those matters we are required to state to them in an auditors’ report and for no other purpose. To the fullest extent
permitted  by  law,  we  do  not  accept  or  assume  responsibility  to  anyone  other  than  the  Company  and  the
Company’s members, as a body, for our audit work, for this report, or for the opinions we have formed.

RESPECTIVE RESPONSIBILITIES OF DIRECTORS AND AUDITOR
As  explained  more  fully  in  the  Directors’  Responsibilities  Statement  set  out  on  page  13,  the  Directors  are
responsible for the preparation of the financial statements and for being satisfied that they give a true and fair
view.  Our  responsibility  is  to  audit,  and  express  an  opinion  on,  the  financial  statements  in  accordance  with
applicable law and International Standards on Auditing (UK and Ireland). Those standards require us to comply
with the Auditing Practices Board’s (APB’s) Ethical Standards for Auditors.

SCOPE OF THE AUDIT OF THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
A  description  of  the  scope  of  an  audit  of  financial  statements  is  provided  on  the  APB’s  web-site  at
www.frc.org.uk/apb/scope/private/cfm.

OPINION ON FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
In our opinion the financial statements:

●

●

●

give a true and fair view of the state of the Company’s affairs as at 31 May 2011 and of its loss for the year
then ended;

have been properly prepared in accordance with IFRSs as adopted by the EU; and

have been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006.

OPINION ON OTHER MATTER PRESCRIBED BY THE COMPANIES ACT 2006
In  our  opinion  the  information  given  in  the  Directors’  Report  for  the  financial  year  for  which  the  financial
statements are prepared is consistent with the financial statements.

MATTERS ON WHICH WE ARE REQUIRED TO REPORT BY EXCEPTION
We  have  nothing  to  report  in  respect  of  the  following  matters  where  the  Companies Act  2006  requires  us  to
report to you if, in our opinion:

●

●

●

adequate accounting records have not been kept, or returns adequate for our audit have not been received
from branches not visited by us; or

the financial statements are not in agreement with the accounting records and returns; or

certain disclosures of Directors’ remuneration specified by law are not made; or

● we have not received all the information and explanations we require for our audit.

Richard Evans (Senior Statutory Auditor)
for and on behalf of KPMG Audit Plc, Statutory Auditor
Chartered Accountants 
St James’ Square
Manchester M2 6DS
United Kingdom

4 August 2011

Surface Transforms plc
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
14

Statement of total comprehensive income
for the year ended 31 May 2011

Revenue 
Cost of sales

Gross profit

Administrative expenses:
Before research costs
Research costs

Total administrative expenses

Other operating income

Operating loss
Financial income
Financial expenses

Loss before tax
Taxation

Loss for the year after tax
Other comprehensive income

Note

2

3

6
6

7

15

2011
£

2010
£

863,439
(342,654)

804,800
(358,537)

520,785

446,263

(711,902)
(996,880)

(698,791)
(670,201)

(1,708,782)

(1,368,992)

215,364

177,589

(972,633)
2,124
(3,379)

(973,888)
102,927

(870,961)
–

(745,140)
339
(2,289)

(747,091)
211,071

(536,019)
–

Total comprehensive income for the year

(870,961)

(536,019)

Loss per ordinary share
Basic and diluted

18

(3.09p)

(2.33p)

All amounts relate to continuing activities.

Surface Transforms plc
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
15

Statement of changes in equity
for the year ended 31 May 2011

For the year to 31 May 2011
Balance at 31 May 2010

Loss for the year

Share
capital
£

Share
premium
account
£

Capital
reserve
£

Retained
earnings
£

Total
£

243,474

6,191,943

463,885 (5,820,169) 1,079,133

–

–

–

(870,961)

(870,961)

Total comprehensive income for the year

243,474

6,191,943

463,885 (6,691,130)

208,172

Transactions with owners, recorded 
directly to equity
Shares issued in the year
Equity settled share based payments

Total contributions by and distributions 
to the owners

75,381
–

1,112,769
–

75,381

1,112,769

–
–

–

– 1,188,150
93,285

93,285

93,285 1,281,435

Balance at 31 May 2011

318,855

7,304,712

463,885 (6,597,845) 1,489,607

For the year to 31 May 2010
Balance at 31 May 2009

Loss for the year

Share
capital
£

Share
premium
account
£

Capital
reserve
£

Retained
earnings
£

Total
£

190,308

5,749,952

463,885 (5,377,622) 1,026,523

–

–

–

(536,019)

(536,019)

Total comprehensive income for the year

190,308

5,749,952

463,885 (5,913,641)

490,504

Transactions with owners, recorded 
directly to equity
Shares issued in the year
Equity settled share based payments

Total contributions by and distributions 
to the owners

53,166
–

441,991
–

53,166

441,991

–
–

–

–
93,472

495,157
93,472

93,472

588,629

Balance at 31 May 2010

243,474

6,191,943

463,885 (5,820,169) 1,079,133

Surface Transforms plc
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
16

Balance sheet
at 31 May 2011

Non-current assets
Property, plant and equipment

Current assets
Inventories
Trade and other receivables
Cash and cash equivalents

Total assets

Current liabilities
Other interest bearing loans and borrowings
Trade and other payables

Non current liabilities
Other interest bearing loans and borrowings

Total liabilities

Net assets

Equity
Share capital
Share premium
Capital reserve
Retained earnings

Note

£

£

£

£

2011

2010

8

9
10

11
12

11

14
15
15
15

304,251
604,027
615,145

(10,230)
(314,974)

(325,204)

–

291,388

355,909

203,041
450,416
414,513

1,523,423

1,814,811

1,067,970

1,423,879

(20,614)
(313,902)

(334,516)

(10,230)

(325,204)

1,489,607

318,855
7,304,712
463,885
(6,597,845)

(344,746)

1,079,133

243,474
6,191,943
463,885
(5,820,169)

Total equity attributable to equity shareholders 
of the Company

1,489,607

1,079,133

These financial statements were approved by the Board of Directors on 4 August 2011 and were signed on its
behalf by:

K D’Silva
Director

Dr K Johnson
Director

Surface Transforms plc
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
17

Cash flow statement
for the year ended 31 May 2011

Cash flows from operating activities
Loss for the year

Adjusted for:
Depreciation charge
Equity settled share-based payment expenses
Financial income
Financial expense
Taxation

Changes in working capital
(Increase)/decrease in inventories
Increase in trade and other receivables
Increase in trade and other payables

Finance income received
Financial expense paid
Taxation received

Net cash used in operating activities

Cash flows from investing activities
Acquisition of property, plant and equipment

Net cash used in investing activities

Cash flows from financing activities
Proceeds from issue of share capital
Proceed from new finance lease
Payment of finance lease liabilities

Net cash from financing activities

Net increase in cash and cash equivalents

Cash and cash equivalents at the beginning of the period

Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the period

Note

2011
£

2010
£

(870,961)

(536,019)

72,299
93,285
(2,124)
3,379
(102,927)

70,904
93,472
(339)
2,289
(211,071)

(807,049)

(580,764)

(101,210)
(153,611)
1,072

25,210
(237,565)
145,233

(1,060,798)

(647,886)

2,124
(3,379)
102,927

339
(2,289)
211,071

(959,126)

(438,765)

(7,778)

(7,778)

(44,365)

(44,365)

1,188,150
–
(20,614)

495,157
13,123
(14,912)

1,167,536

493,368

200,632

414,513

615,145

10,238

404,275

414,513

6
6
7

8

Surface Transforms plc
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
18

Notes to the financial statements
for the year ended 31 May 2011

1

ACCOUNTING POLICIES
Surface Transforms plc (“the Company”) is a Company incorporated and domiciled in the UK.

Statement of compliance
The  financial  statements  have  been  prepared  in  accordance  with  International  Financial  Reporting
Standards (“IFRSs”) as adopted by the EU.

The financial statements were approved by the Board on 4 August 2011.

Basis of preparation
The  financial  statements  have  been  prepared  in  accordance  with  applicable  accounting  standards  and
under the historical cost convention. 

The  accounting  policies  set  out  below  have,  unless  otherwise  stated,  been  applied  consistently  to  all
periods presented in these financial statements.

Going concern
The financial statements have been prepared on a going concern basis which the Directors believe to be
appropriate. The  Company  incurred  a  net  loss  of  £870,961  during  the  year  however  the  Directors  are
satisfied, based on detailed cash flow projections, that sufficient cash is available to meet the Company’s
needs as they fall due for at least 12 months from the date of signing the accounts. Revenues are expected
to continue to increase in the coming years resulting in the Company becoming profitable in due course. 

Further information regarding the Company’s business activities, together with the factors likely to affect
future development, performance and position are set out in the Chairman’s statement on pages 3 to 5 and
the  Director’s  report  on  pages  8  to  10.  In  addition,  note  19  to  the  financial  statements  includes  the
Company’s  objectives,  policies  and  processes  for  managing  its  capital;  its  financial  risk  management
objectives; details of its financial instruments and its exposures to credit risk and liquidity risk.

The Directors believe that the Company is well placed to manage its business risks successfully despite the
current uncertain economic outlook. After making enquiries, the Directors have a reasonable expectation
that the Company has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future.
Accordingly, they continue to adopt the going concern basis in preparing the annual report and accounts.

Share based payments
The  share  option  programme  allows  employees  to  acquire  shares  of  the  Company.  The  fair  value  is
measured at grant date and spread over the period during which the employees become unconditionally
entitled to the options. The fair value of the options granted is measured using an option pricing model,
taking into account the terms and conditions upon which the options were granted. The amount recognised
as an expense is adjusted to reflect the actual number of share options that vest except where forfeiture is
only due to share prices not achieving the threshold for vesting.

Property, plant and equipment
Property,  plant  and  equipment  are  stated  at  cost  less  accumulated  depreciation  and  accumulated
impairment losses.

Where parts of an item of property, plant and equipment have different useful lives, they are accounted for
as separate items of property, plant and equipment.

Leases in which the Company assumes substantially all the risks and rewards of ownership of the leased
asset are classified as finance leases. Leased assets acquired by way of finance lease are stated at an amount
equal to the lower of their fair value and the present value of the minimum lease payments at inception of
the  lease,  less  accumulated  depreciation  and  less  accumulated  impairment  losses.  Lease  payments  are
accounted for as described below.

Surface Transforms plc
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
19

Notes to the financial statements
continued

1

ACCOUNTING POLICIES (continued)
Property, plant and equipment (continued)
Depreciation is charged to the income statement on a straight-line basis over the estimated useful lives of
each part of an item of property, plant and equipment. Land is not depreciated. The estimated useful lives
are as follows:

– 12.5%-20% per annum
Plant and machinery
– 15% per annum
Fixtures and fittings
Motor vehicles
– 25% per annum
Leasehold improvements  – Over life of lease

Depreciation methods, useful lives and residual values are reviewed at each balance sheet date.

Foreign currencies
Transactions  in  foreign  currencies  are  recorded  using  the  rate  of  exchange  ruling  at  the  date  of  the
transaction.  Monetary  assets  and  liabilities  denominated  in  foreign  currencies  are  translated  to  the
functional currency at the foreign exchange rate ruling at the balance sheet date and the gains or losses on
translation are included in the income statement.

Leases
Operating lease payments
Payments made under operating leases are recognised in the income statement on a straight-line basis over
the term of the lease. Lease incentives received are recognised in the income statement as an integral part
of the total lease expense.

Finance lease payments
Minimum lease payments are apportioned between the finance charge and the reduction of the outstanding
liability. The finance charge is allocated to each period during the lease term so as to produce a constant
periodic rate of interest on the remaining balance of the liability.

Government grants
Revenue grants are credited to the statement of total comprehensive income, and included within other
operating income, so as to match them with expenditure to which they relate.

Post retirement benefits
The  Company  does  not  operate  a  pension  scheme,  but  does  contribute  to  specific  employees’  personal
pension schemes. The amount charged to the profit and loss account represents the contributions payable
to employees personal pension schemes during the accounting year.

Research and development expenditure
Expenditure on research activities is recognised in the income statement as an expense as incurred.

Expenditure  on  development  activities  is  capitalised  if  the  product  or  process  is  technically  and
commercially feasible and the Company intends and has the technical ability and sufficient resources to
complete development, future economic benefits are probable and if the Company can measure reliably
the expenditure attributable to the intangible asset during its development. No development costs met the
criteria for capitalisation in the current or preceding years.

Inventories 
Inventories are stated at the lower of cost and net realisable value. In determining the cost of raw materials
and consumables the purchase price is used. For work in progress, cost is taken as production cost, which
includes an appropriate proportion of attributable overheads.

Surface Transforms plc
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
20

Notes to the financial statements
continued

1

ACCOUNTING POLICIES (continued)
Taxation
The  charge  for  taxation  is  based  on  the  loss  for  the  year  and  takes  into  account  taxation  deferred  or
accelerated arising from temporary differences between the carrying amounts of certain items for taxation
and for accounting purposes. 

Deferred taxation is provided for in full at the tax rate which is expected to apply to the period when the
deferred taxation is expected to be realised, including on tax losses carried forward. 

Deferred taxation assets are recognised only to the extent that it is probable that future taxable profits will
be available against which the temporary differences can be utilised. 

Research and development tax credits are recognised on a cash received basis as a reduction in the current
tax payable as this is when the tax credit is considered recoverable as the associated uncertainties have
been eliminated.

Cash and cash equivalents 
Cash and cash equivalents, for the purpose of the cash flow statement, comprises cash in hand and deposits
repayable on demand.

Revenue
Revenue comprises income derived from the supply of carbon fibre materials. Revenue is recognised on
transfer to the customer of significant risks and rewards of ownership, generally this will be when goods are
despatched to the customer. Turnover excludes value added taxes.

Contractual  arrangements  exist  with  specific  customers  which  set  selling  prices  and  target  volumes  for
future  periods.  The  revenue  derived  from  specific  purchase  orders  raised  against  these  contracts  is
recognised in a consistent manner to that described above.

Non-derivative financial instruments
Non-derivative financial instruments comprise trade and other receivables, cash and cash equivalents and
trade and other payables.

Trade and other receivables
Trade and other receivables are recognised initially at fair value. Subsequent to initial recognition they are
measured at amortised cost using the effective interest method, less any impairment losses.

Trade and other payables
Trade and other payables are recognised initially at fair value. Subsequent to initial recognition they are
measured at amortised cost using the effective interest method.

Capital management
The Company manages its capital to ensure that it will be able to continue as a going concern and satisfy
its debt as it falls due whilst also maximising opportunities to progress the development of the business. The
capital  structure  of  the  Company  consists  of  cash  and  cash  equivalents  and  equity  attributable  to  share
holders comprising issued capital.

The key indicator of capital management performance used by management is the level of cash and cash
equivalents  available  to  the  Company.  Cash  balances  are  monitored  on  a  daily  basis  to  ensure  that  the
actual position is in line with cash flow forecasts.

During the year additional cash of £1,188,150 was raised via the issue of share capital.

Interest rate risk
The Company finances its operations through cash. Cash resources are invested to attract the highest rates
for periods that do not limit access to these resources.

Surface Transforms plc
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
21

Notes to the financial statements
continued

1

ACCOUNTING POLICIES (continued)
Liquidity risk
With regard to liquidity, the Company’s policy has throughout the year been to ensure that the Company is
able at all times to meet its financial liabilities as and when they fall due.

Critical accounting estimates and judgements
The preparation of financial statements in conformity with adopted IFRSs requires management to make
judgements,  estimates  and  assumptions  that  affect  the  application  of  policies  and  reported  amounts  of
assets  and  liabilities,  income  and  expenses.  The  estimates  and  associated  assumptions  are  based  on
historical experience and various other factors that are believed to be reasonable under the circumstances,
the results of which form the basis of making the judgements about carrying values of assets and liabilities
that  are  not  already  apparent  from  other  sources.  Actual  results  may  differ  from  these  estimates.  The
estimates  and  assumptions  which  have  a  significant  risk  of  causing  a  material  adjustment  to  carrying
amount of assets and liabilities within the next financial year are discussed below:

Impairment of property, plant and equipment
Property, plant and equipment are reviewed for impairment if events or changes in circumstances indicate
that the carrying amount of an asset is not recoverable.

Provision to write inventories down to net realisable value
The  Company  makes  provisions  for  obsolescence  based  on  historical  experiences  and  management
estimates of future events. Actual outcome could vary significantly from these estimates.

Research and development expenditure
The Board considers the definitions of research and development costs as outlined in IAS 38: Intangible
assets when determining the correct treatment of costs incurred. Where such expenditure is technically and
commercially  feasible,  the  Company  intends  and  has  the  technical  ability  and  sufficient  resources  to
complete development, future economic benefits are probable and if the Company can measure reliably
the expenditure attributable to the intangible asset it is treated as development expenditure and capitalised
on the balance sheet.

In considering whether an item of expenditure meets these criteria, the Board applies judgement. During
the year all such expenditure has been expensed to the income statement on the grounds that it relates to
feasibility studies to identify new applications for the technology or methods of improving the production
process. As the technical feasibility of this work is unknown at the time the costs are incurred, none meet
the criteria for capitalisation during the current or previous year.

Segmental reporting
The Board has reviewed the requirements of IFRS 8 “Operating Segments”, including consideration of what
results and information the Chief Executive reviews regularly to assess performance and allocate resources,
and concluded that, as under IAS 14, all revenue falls under a single business segment.

The Directors consider the business does not have separate divisional segments as defined under IFRS 8.
The  Chief  Executive  assesses  the  commercial  performance  of  the  business  based  upon  a  single  set  of
revenues, margins, operating costs and assets.

New  standards  and  interpretations  that  have  been  endorsed,  but  which  are  not  yet  effective  and  not 
early adopted
There  are  no  new  endorsed  standards,  amendments  to  standards  and  interpretations  which  are  not  yet
effective  for  the  year  ended  31  May  2011  and  which  will  have  a  significant  impact  on  the  information
reported by the company in future periods.

Surface Transforms plc
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
22

Notes to the financial statements
continued

2

SEGMENT REPORTING
Due to the start up nature of the business the Company is currently focussed on building revenue streams
from a variety of different markets. As there is only one manufacturing facility and this has capacity above
and  beyond  the  current  levels  of  trade  there  is  no  requirement  to  allocate  resources  to  or  discriminate
between specific markets or products. As a result the Company’s chief operating decision maker, the Chief
Executive, reviews performance information for the Company as a whole and does not allocate resources
based on products or markets. In addition, all products manufactured by the Company are produced using
similar processes.

Having considered this information in conjunction with the requirements of IFRS 8, as at the reporting date
the Board of Directors have concluded that the Company has only one reportable segment, that being the
manufacture and sale of carbon fibre materials.

Segment results

Segment revenues
Operating expenses

Results from operating activities
Net finance costs

Loss before tax

Segment assets

2011
Total
£

2010
Total
£

863,439
(1,836,072)

804,800
(1,549,940)

(972,633)
(1,255)

(745,140)
(1,950)

(973,888)

(747,090)

1,489,607

1,079,133

The Company considers it offers a single product, namely carbon fibre material, which is machined into
differing shapes depending on the intended purpose of the end user.

Revenue by geographical destination is analysed as follows:

United Kingdom
Rest of Europe
United States of America

2011
£

233,243
594,232
35,964

863,439

2010
£

166,170
336,943
301,687

804,800

Surface Transforms plc
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
23

Notes to the financial statements
continued

3

EXPENSES AND AUDITORS REMUNERATION

Operating loss before taxation is stated
after charging
Depreciation of owned tangible fixed assets
Research costs expensed as incurred
Rents payable under operating leases – land and buildings
Rents payable under operating leases – Other
Exchange losses
Inventory write down

after crediting
Exchange gains
Government grants

2011
£

2010
£

72,299
996,880
54,754
11,484
6,251
28,969

2,207
215,364

70,904
670,201
54,362
11,484
4,699
16,639

2,802
177,589

Audit of these financial statements
Amounts receivable by auditors and their associates in respect of:

Audit of financial statements pursuant to legislation

17,152

16,800

Government grants
Grants received comprise revenue grants from the Technology Strategy Board (formerly DTI).

These are subject to making expenditure as stipulated in the grant applications and to audit of the claims.
There are no unfulfilled conditions or contingencies associated with government assistance received.

4

5

REMUNERATION OF DIRECTORS
The Company considers key management personnel as defined in IAS 24 “Related party disclosures” to be
the  Directors  of  the  Company.  The  aggregate  amount  of  emoluments  paid  to  Directors  in  respect  of
qualifying services during the year was £203,965 (2010: £227,619). Of this £96,512, (2010: £116,587) was
made to the highest paid Director and Company pension contributions of £22,750 (2010: £10,000) were
made to a money purchase scheme on his behalf.

Pension contributions were not received by any other Director during either the current or prior year.

STAFF NUMBERS AND COSTS
The average number of persons employed by the Company (including Directors) during the year, analysed
by category, was as follows:

Directors
Other employees

The aggregate payroll costs of these persons were as follows:

Wages and salaries
Social security costs
Other pension costs (see note 16)

Surface Transforms plc
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
24

Number of employees
2010
2011

6
20

26

2011
£

663,452
68,472
105,056

836,980

6
15

21

2010
£

572,722
60,524
68,512

701,758

Notes to the financial statements
continued

6

FINANCIAL INCOME AND EXPENSES

Financial income
Bank interest receivable 

2011
£

2,124

2010
£

339

Financial expenses
Total interest expense on financial liabilities measured at amortised cost

3,379

2,289

7

TAXATION
Analysis of credit in year:

UK corporation tax
Research and development tax repayment

Income tax credit

2011
£

2010
£

(102,927)

(211,071)

(102,927)

(211,071)

Details of the unrecognised deferred tax asset are included in note 13.

Factors affecting the tax credit for the current period
The current tax credit for the year is lower (2010: lower) than the standard rate of corporation tax in the UK
of 27.67% (2010: 28%). The differences are explained below:

Reconciliation of effective tax rate

Loss for the year
Total income tax credit

Loss excluding income tax

Current tax at average rate of 27.67% (2010: 28.00%)

Effects of:
Non-deductible expenses 
Change in unrecognised timing differences
Current year losses for which no deferred tax recognised
Tax incentives

Income tax credit (see above)

2011
£

2010
£

(870,961)
(102,927)

(536,019)
(211,071)

(973,888)

(747,090)

(269,433)

(209,185)

1,679
3,285
264,469
(102,927)

917
(1,191)
209,459
(211,071)

(102,927)

(211,071)

Factors that may affect future tax charges 
The effective tax rate in future years is expected to be below the standard rate of corporation tax in the UK
due principally to historical losses which have been carried forward.

Surface Transforms plc
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
25

Notes to the financial statements
continued

8

PROPERTY, PLANT AND EQUIPMENT

Cost
At 31 May 2009
Additions

At 31 May 2010
Additions

At 31 May 2011

Depreciation
At 31 May 2009
Charge for year

At 31 May 2010
Charge for year

At 31 May 2011

Net book value
At 31 May 2009

At 31 May 2010

At 31 May 2011

Leasehold
improvements
£

Plant and
machinery
£

Fixtures and
fittings
£

74,620
–

74,620
–

74,620

14,079
7,461

21,540
7,462

29,002

60,541

53,080

45,618

409,330
43,354

452,684
5,928

458,612

112,702
53,517

166,219
56,638

222,857

296,628

286,465

235,755

44,272
1,011

45,283
1,850

47,133

18,993
9,926

28,919
8,199

37,118

25,279

16,364

10,015

Total
£

528,222
44,365

572,587
7,778

580,365

145,774
70,904

216,678
72,299

288,977

382,448

355,909

291,388

At 31 May 2011 the net carrying amount of leased plant and machinery was £48,235 (2010: £56,777).

9

INVENTORIES

Raw materials and consumables
Work in progress

2011
£

27,184
277,067

304,251

2010
£

30,481
172,560

203,041

Raw materials, consumables and changes in finished goods and work in progress recognised as cost of sales
in the year amounted to £342,654 (2010: £358,537).

10

TRADE AND OTHER RECEIVABLES

Trade receivables
Other receivables
Prepayments and accrued income

All receivables fall due within one year.

2011
£

480,716
74,178
49,133

604,027

2010
£

285,910
112,024
52,482

450,416

Surface Transforms plc
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
26

Notes to the financial statements
continued

11 OTHER INTEREST-BEARING LOANS AND BORROWINGS

This  note  provides  information  about  the  contractual  terms  of  the  Company’s  interest-bearing  loans  and
borrowings, which are measured at amortised cost. For more information about the Company’s exposure to
interest rate and foreign currency risk, see note 19.

Current liabilities
Current portion of finance lease liabilities

Non-current liabilities
Finance lease liabilities

Finance lease liabilities are payable as follows:

Future
minimum
lease
payments
2011
£

11,228
–

11,228

Present value
of minimum
lease
payments
2011
£

10,230
–

10,230

Interest
2011
£

998
–

998

Future
minimum
lease
payments
2010
£

23,993
11,228

35,221

Less than one year
Between one and five years

12

TRADE AND OTHER PAYABLES: AMOUNTS FALLING DUE WITHIN ONE YEAR

Trade payables
Taxation and social security
Accruals and deferred income

2011
£

2010
£

10,230

20,614

–

10,230

Present value
of minimum
lease
payments
2010
£

20,614
10,230

30,844

Interest
2010
£

3,379
998

4,377

2011
£

190,297
38,563
86,114

314,974

2010
£

165,752
36,506
111,644

313,902

13 DEFERRED TAX

The elements of deferred taxation are as follows:

Difference between accumulated depreciation and amortisation 
and capital allowances
Other short term timing differences
Tax losses

Unrecognised deferred tax asset

2011
£

2010
£

28,862
–
(829,724)

35,908
(2,015)
(625,883)

(800,862)

(591,990)

The Company has an unrecognised deferred tax asset at 31 May 2011 of £800,862 (2010: £591,990) relating
principally to tax losses which the Company can offset against future taxable profits from the same trade.

The deferred tax asset has not been recognised in the accounts because it is not possible to assess whether
there will be suitable taxable profits from which the future reversal of the underlying temporary differences
can be deducted.

Surface Transforms plc
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
27

Notes to the financial statements
continued

14 CALLED UP SHARE CAPITAL

Authorised
40,000,000 ordinary shares of £0.01 each 
(2010: 30,000,000 shares of £0.01 each)

2011
£

2010
£

400,000

300,000

Allotted, called up and fully paid
31,885,442 shares of £0.01 each (2010: 24,347,328 shares of £0.01 each)

318,855

243,474

An additional 7,538,094 shares were issued in November 2010, for a total consideration of £1,188,150,
net of expenses.

The Company operates a share incentive scheme for the benefit of the Directors and certain employees. All
options are granted at the discretion of the Board. The scheme grants options to purchase ordinary shares
of £0.01 each. No options were exercised in the period.

The options granted to Directors, date of grant and exercise price and exercise periods under the scheme
are set out in the report on Directors’ remuneration on pages 11 and 12. In addition to the Directors’ share
options, certain employees have been granted the following options:

Date of grant

18/04/2007
30/06/2008
22/09/2008
01/03/2010

Number of
unexpired share
options at year end

160,000
146,200
557,547
320,000

Exercise price

Exercise period

£0.21
£0.18
£0.18
£0.09

18/04/10-18/04/17
30/06/11-30/06/18
22/09/11-22/09/18
01/03/13-01/03/20

There are a total of 1,183,747 unexpired options held by employees and a total of 1,471,926 unexpired
options held by Directors.

15

SHARE PREMIUM AND RESERVES

At 31 May 2009
Retained loss for the year
Share issue
Reversal of charge in relation to share based payments

At 31 May 2010
Retained loss for the year
Share issue
Reversal of charge in relation to share based payments

Share premium
account
£

5,749,952
–
441,991
–

6,191,943
–
1,112,769
–

Capital
reserve
£

463,885
–
–
–

463,885
–
–
–

Retained
earnings
£

(5,377,622)
(536,019)
–
93,472

(5,820,169)
(870,961)
–
93,285

At 31 May 2011

7,304,712

463,885

(6,597,845)

16

PENSION SCHEME
The  Company  contributes  to  specific  employees’  personal  pension  schemes.  The  pension  charge  for 
the  year  represents  contributions  payable  by  the  Company  to  the  schemes  and  amounted  to  £105,056 
(2010:  £68,512).  During  the  year  one  director  and  several  senior  managers  opted  to  enter  into  salary
exchange  arrangements  whereby  they  sacrificed  salary  for  increased  pension  contributions.  These
arrangements accounted for £74,675 of the pension contributions (2010: £35,225).

There were outstanding contributions of £nil (2010: £nil) at the end of the financial year.

Surface Transforms plc
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
28

Notes to the financial statements
continued

17 RELATED PARTY DISCLOSURES

The Company purchased goods and services to the value of £5,000 from Design Q Limited. 

Kenneth  Baker  OBE,  a  non-executive  director  of  Design  Q  Limited,  is  a  non-executive  Director  of  the
Company. 

All  transactions  with  related  parties  are  carried  out  at  arms  length.  As  at  31  May  2011,  there  were  no
amounts outstanding with Design Q Limited (2010: £nil).

18

LOSS PER ORDINARY SHARE
The calculation of basic loss per ordinary share is based on the loss for the financial year divided by the
weighted average number of shares in issue during the year.

Losses and number of shares used in the calculations of loss per ordinary share are set out below:

Basic

Loss after tax 

Weighted average number of shares

Loss per share

2011
£

2010
£

(870,961)

(536,019)

28,229,963

23,012,231

(3.09p)

(2.33p)

The calculation of diluted loss per ordinary share is identical to that used for the basic loss per ordinary
share. This is because the exercise of options would have the effect of reducing the loss per ordinary share
from continuing operations and is therefore not dilutive under the terms of IAS33.

19

FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS
The Company’s policies with regard to financial instruments are set out within the accounting policies note.
The risks arising from the Company’s financial assets and liabilities are set out below with the policies for
their respective management.

Currency Risk
The Company transacts business in foreign currencies and therefore incurs some transaction risk.

The Company had no open foreign exchange contracts at the Balance Sheet date.

The Company’s exposure to foreign currency risk was as follows, this is based on the carrying amount for
monetary financial instruments:

Cash and cash equivalents
Trade receivables
Trade payables
Finance lease liabilities

US Dollar
£

–
–
(36,007)
–

31 May 2011
Euro
£

Sterling
£

US Dollar
£

31 May 2010
Euro
£

–
64,467
(407)
–

615,145
416,249
(153,882)
(10,230)

–
–
(1,316)
–

–
61,716
(10,516)
–

Sterling
£

414,513
224,194
(153,920)
(30,844)

Net exposure

(36,007)

64,060

867,282

(1,316)

51,200

453,943

US Dollar
Euro

Average Rate

2011

1.580
1.174

2010

1.596
1.135

Reporting Date Spot Rate
2010

2011

1.647
1.153

1.423
1.178

Surface Transforms plc
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
29

Notes to the financial statements
continued

19

FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS (continued)
Sensitivity Analysis
A ten percent strengthening of the pound against the US Dollar and the Euro at 31 May 2011 would have
(decreased)/increased  profit  by  the  amounts  below.  This  analysis  assumes  that  all  other  variables,  in
particular interest rates, remain constant. The analysis is performed on the same basis for 2010.

31 May 2011
31 May 2010

US Dollar
£

3,273
120

Euro
£

(5,823)
(4,654)

A ten percent weakening of the pound against the US Dollar and the Euro at 31 May 2011 would have an
equal and opposite effect to the amounts shown above, on the basis all other variables remain constant.

Price Risk
The Company aims to minimise its exposure to supplier price increases and customer price decreases by
offsetting reciprocal supplier and customer arrangements.

Credit Risk
The Company operates a closely monitored collection policy.

The ageing of trade receivables at the reporting date was:

Not past due
Past due 0 to 30 days
Past due 31 to 90 days

Gross
£

31 May 2011
Impairment
£

Net
£

31 May 2010
Impairment
£

Gross
£

451,938
11,840
16,938

480,716

–
–
–

–

451,938
11,840
16,938

227,232
11,840
46,838

480,716

285,910

–
–
–

–

Net
£

227,232
11,840
46,838

285,910

The was no movement in the allowance for impairment in respect of trade receivables.

Liquidity Risk
The Company’s objective is to maintain a balance between continuity and flexibility of funding through the
use of short term deposits.

The contractual maturity of all cash and cash equivalents, trade and other receivables at the current and
preceding balance sheet date is within one year.

The  contractual  maturity  of  trade  and  other  payables  at  the  current  and  preceding  balance  sheet  date  is
within three months.

The contractual maturity of finance lease liabilities can be found in note 11.

Surface Transforms plc
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
30

Notes to the financial statements
continued

19

FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS (continued)
Interest Rate Risk
At the balance sheet date the interest rate profile of the Company’s interest-bearing financial instruments
was:

Fixed rate instruments
Finance lease liabilities 

2011
£

2010
£

10,230

30,844

The Company has cash deposits of £498,772 (2010: £413,251).These funds are placed on premium rate
deposit at rates which tracks bank base rate. These deposits are reviewed at least every 30 days. These funds
are  available  on  demand.  At  the  year  end,  the  weighted  average  interest  rate  for  the  floating  rate  cash
deposits was the Barclays base rate of 0.50% (2010: 0.50% Barclays).

Fair values of the Company’s financial assets and liabilities
Trade and other receivables
The  fair  value  of  trade  and  other  receivables  is  estimated  as  the  present  value  of  future  cash  flows,
discounted at the market rate of interest at the balance sheet date if the effect is material.

Trade and other payables
The fair value of trade and other payables is estimated as the present value of future cash flows, discounted
at the market rate of interest at the balance sheet date if the effect is material.

Cash and cash equivalents
The  fair  value  of  cash  and  cash  equivalents  is  estimated  as  its  carrying  amount,  all  cash  and  cash
equivalents are repayable on demand. 

Interest-bearing borrowings
Fair value, which after initial recognition is determined for disclosure purposes only, is calculated based on
the present value of future principal and interest cash flows, discounted at the market rate of interest at the
balance sheet date if the effect is material.

The fair value of financial assets and liabilities, together with the carrying amounts shown in the balance
sheet are as follows:

Financial assets
Cash and cash equivalents

Loans and receivables
Trade receivables

Total financial assets

2011

2010

Carrying 
value
£

Fair
value
£

Carrying
value
£

Fair
value
£

615,145

615,145

414,513

414,513

480,716

480,716

1,095,861

1,095,861

285,910

700,423

285,910

700,423

Financial liabilities at amortised cost
Trade payables
Finance lease liabilities

(190,297)
(10,230)

(190,297)
(10,230)

(165,752)
(30,844)

(165,752)
(30,844)

Total financial liabilities

(200,527)

(200,527)

(196,596)

(196,596)

Surface Transforms plc
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
31

Notes to the financial statements
continued

20 COMMITMENTS

Non-cancellable operating lease rentals are payable as follows:

Within one year
In the second to fifth years inclusive

Land and
buildings
£

54,754
9,841

64,595

2011

2010

Motor
vehicles
£

5,757
–

5,757

Land and
buildings
£

54,754
64,595

119,349

Motor
vehicles
£

11,439
5,757

17,196

21

SHARE BASED PAYMENTS
Share Options
The number of options outstanding under the Company’s share option scheme is as follows:

Number of Share Options – Ordinary Shares at 1p

Note

At 31 May
2010

Granted Surrendered

Lapsed

At 31 May
2011

Exercise
price

(a)
(b)
(a)
(b)
(a)
(b)
(a)
(b)

279,125
110,875
457,200
63,000
847,035
213,438
340,000
345,000

2,655,673

–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–

–

–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–

–

–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–

–

279,125
110,875
457,200
63,000
847,035
213,438
340,000
345,000

2,655,673

£0.21
£0.21
£0.18
£0.18
£0.19
£0.19
£0.09
£0.09

Date from
which 
exercisable

18/04/2009
18/04/2009
30/06/2011
22/09/2011
30/06/2011
22/09/2011
01/03/2013
01/03/2013

Expiry 
date

18/04/2017
18/04/2017
30/06/2018
22/09/2018
30/06/2018
22/09/2018
01/03/2020
01/03/2020

(a)  These options have been granted under the EMI approved scheme. There have been no variations to
the terms and conditions or performance criteria attached to these share options during the financial
year. There are no performance conditions attached to these shares other than continued employment
by the Company.

(b)

These options have been granted under the unapproved scheme. There have been no variations to the
terms and conditions or performance criteria attached to these share options during the financial year.
There are no performance conditions attached to these shares other than continued employment by
the Company.

There was no cost payable by the employees on the grant of any of the above options.

The option holder may only exercise his options during employment with the Company.

Surface Transforms plc
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
32

Notes to the financial statements
continued

21

SHARE BASED PAYMENTS (continued)
The movements of the EMI and unapproved share options outstanding are shown below:

EMI Scheme

Unapproved Scheme

Number
of awards

1,616,652
340,000
(33,282)

1,923,370
–
–

1,923,370

Weighted 
average 
exercise
price
£

0.19
0.09
0.19

0.17
–
–

0.17

Number
of awards

387,313
345,000
–

732,313
–
–

732,313

Weighted 
average 
exercise
price
£

0.19
0.09
–

0.14
–
–

0.14

9p to 21p

9p to 21p

Outstanding at 31 May 2009
Granted
Forfeited and surrendered

Outstanding at 31 May 2010
Granted
Forfeited and surrendered

Outstanding at 31 May 2011

Range of exercise prices

Weighted average remaining contractual life

7 years 4 months

7 years 9 months

There were no share options exercised during the year (2010: nil).

A charge of £93,285 (2010: £93,472) has been made in the statement of comprehensive income to spread
the fair value of the options over the 3 year service obligations of those incentives.

Assumptions used in the valuation of share based options
In  calculating  the  fair  value  of  the  share  based  payment  arrangements  the  Company  has  used  the  Black
Scholes method. There were no share options granted in 2011. The assumptions used to calculate the fair
value of options issued in the previous financial year on the date of grant were as follows:

Weighted average assumptions

Fair value per share option
Share price on date of grant
Exercise price
Share options granted in the year – EMI scheme
Share options granted in the year – Unapproved scheme
Expected volatility
Exercise pattern (years)
Expected dividend yields
Risk free rate of return

2011

n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a

2010

6.63p
8.5p
9p
340,000
345,000
90%
3-10 years uniformly
0%
2%

The fair value of the share options is applied to the number of options that are expected to vest which takes
into  account  the  expected  and  actual  forfeitures  over  the  vesting  period  as  a  result  of  cessation  of
employment.

Expected volatility was determined by assessing the Company’s historic data and the market in which the
Company operates.

22 CAPITAL MANAGEMENT

The  Board’s  policy  is  to  maintain  a  strong  capital  base  so  as  to  maintain  investor,  creditor  and  market
confidence and to sustain future development of the business. The Board of Directors monitors the return
on capital, defined as net operating income divided by total shareholders’ equity.

At  present  employees  and  Directors  would  hold  37%  of  the  share  capital,  following  the  exercise  of  all
outstanding share options.

Surface Transforms plc
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
33

Company information and advisers
for the year ended 31 May 2008

WEBSITES

www.surface-transforms.com and www.systemsST.com

REGISTERED NUMBER

03769702

DIRECTORS

Kevin D’Silva (Non-executive Chairman)
Dr Kevin Johnson (Chief Executive)
Dr Geoffrey Gould (Sales and Marketing Director)
Professor David Thomas Clark (Non-executive Director)
Kenneth Michael Baker OBE (Non-executive Director)
Richard Douglas Gledhill (Non-executive Director)

COMPANY SECRETARY

Geoffrey Vernon Hall

ADDRESS

NOMINATED ADVISER 

BROKERS

AUDITORS

SOLICITORS TO THE COMPANY

BANKERS

REGISTRARS

Unit 4
Olympic Park
Poole Hall Road
Ellesmere Port
Cheshire CH66 1ST

Seymour Pierce Limited
20 Old Bailey
London EC4M 7EN

Seymour Pierce Limited
20 Old Bailey
London EC4M 7EN

KPMG Audit Plc
St James’ Square
Manchester M2 6DS

Gateley (Manchester) LLP
3 Hardman Square
Spinningfields
Manchester M3 3EB

Barclays Bank plc
125 Main Street
Frodsham
Cheshire WA6 7AD

Capita Registrars
The Registry
34 Beckenham Road
Beckenham
Kent BR3 4TU

Surface Transforms plc
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
34

Notice of Annual General Meeting
for the year ended 31 May 2008

NOTICE  IS  HEREBY  GIVEN  that  the  annual  general  meeting  of  Surface Transforms  plc  (the  “Company”)  will 
be held at Unit 4 Olympic Park, Poole Hall Road, Ellesmere Port, Cheshire CH66 1ST, on 14 October 2011 at
12.00 noon for the following purposes:

ORDINARY BUSINESS
1.

To receive the annual accounts of the Company for the financial year ended 31 May 2011 together with
the last Directors’ report, the last Directors’ remuneration report and the auditors’ report on those accounts.

2.

3.

4.

5.

To re-elect K D’Silva, who retires by rotation pursuant to article 113 of the articles of association of the
Company and who, being eligible, offers himself for re-election as a Director.

To re-elect K Johnson who retires pursuant to article 113 of the articles of association of the Company and
who, being eligible, offers himself for re-election as a Director.

To re-elect David Bundred, who was appointed during the year, retires in accordance with the articles of
association of the Company and who, being eligible, offers himself for re-election as a Director.

To  re-appoint  KPMG  Audit  Plc  as  auditors  of  the  Company  and  to  authorise  the  Directors  to  fix  their
remuneration.

SPECIAL BUSINESS
To consider and, if thought fit, pass the following resolution which will be proposed as an ordinary resolution:

6.

“THAT,  in  substitution  for  all  existing  and  unexercised  authorities  and  powers,  the  Directors  of  the
Company be and they are hereby generally and unconditionally authorised for the purpose of section 551
of the Companies Act 2006 (the “Act”): 

(a)

(b)

to exercise all or any of the powers of the Company to allot shares of the Company or to grant rights
to subscribe for, or to convert any security into, shares of the Company (such shares and rights being
altogether referred to as “Relevant Securities”) up to an aggregate nominal value of £106,284 to such
persons  at  such  times  and  generally  on  such  terms  and  conditions  as  the  Directors  may  determine
(subject always to the articles of association of the Company); and further

to allot equity securities (as defined in section 560 of the Act) up to an aggregate nominal value of
£106,284 in connection with a rights issue or similar offer in favour of ordinary shareholders where
the  equity  securities  respectively  attributable  to  the  interests  of  all  ordinary  shareholders  are
proportionate (as nearly as may be) to the respective numbers of ordinary shares held by them subject
only  to  such  exclusions  or  other  arrangements  as  the  directors  of  the  Company  may  consider
appropriate to deal with fractional entitlements or legal and practical difficulties under the laws of, or
the requirements of any recognised regulatory body in any territory,

PROVIDED THAT  this  authority  shall,  unless  previously  renewed,  varied  or  revoked  by  the  Company  in
general meeting, expire at the conclusion of the next annual general meeting or on the date which is 6
months after the next accounting reference date of the Company (if earlier) save that the Directors of the
Company may, before the expiry of such period, make an offer or agreement which would or might require
relevant securities or equity securities (as the case may be) to be allotted after the expiry of such period and
the  Directors  of  the  Company  may  allot  relevant  securities  or  equity  securities  (as  the  case  may  be)  in
pursuance of such offer or agreement as if the authority conferred hereby had not expired.”

To consider and, if thought fit, pass the following resolution which will be proposed as a special resolution:

7.

“THAT, subject to and conditional upon the passing of the resolution numbered 6 in the notice convening
the  meeting  at  which  this  resolution  was  proposed  and  in  substitution  for  all  existing  and  unexercised
authorities and powers, the Directors of the Company be and are hereby empowered pursuant to section
570  of  the Act  to  allot  equity  securities  (as  defined  in  section  560  of  the Act)  pursuant  to  the  authority
conferred  upon  them  by  resolution  6  as  if  section  561  of  the  Act  did  not  apply  to  any  such  allotment
provided that this authority and power shall be limited to:

(a)

the allotment of equity securities in connection with a rights issue or similar offer in favour of ordinary
shareholders  where  the  equity  securities  respectively  attributable  to  the  interests  of  all  ordinary
shareholders are proportionate (as nearly as may be) to the respective numbers of ordinary shares held

Surface Transforms plc
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
35

Notice of Annual General Meeting
continued

by them subject only to such exclusions or other arrangements as the Directors of the Company may
consider appropriate to deal with fractional entitlements or legal and practical difficulties under the
laws of, or the requirements of any recognised regulatory body in any, territory; and

(b)

the  allotment  (otherwise  than  pursuant  to  sub-paragraph  (a)  above)  of  equity  securities  up  to  an
aggregate nominal amount of £31,885, representing approximately 10% of the current issued share
capital of the Company,

and shall expire at the conclusion of the next annual general meeting or on the date which is 6 months
after the next accounting reference date of the Company (if earlier) save that the Company may before such
expiry make an offer or agreement which would or might require equity securities to be allotted after such
expiry and the Directors may allot equity securities in pursuance of such offer or agreement as if the power
conferred hereby had not expired.”

By order of the Board

G V Hall
Company Secretary

Dated: 4 August 2011

Registered Office:
Unit 4 Olympic Park
Poole Hall Road
Ellesmere Port
Cheshire CH66 1ST

Company number: 3769702

Notes:
1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

A member of the Company entitled to attend and vote at the meeting convened by this notice is entitled to appoint one or more proxies
to exercise any of his rights to attend, speak and vote at that meeting on his behalf. If a member appoints more than one proxy, each
proxy must be entitled to exercise the rights attached to different shares. A proxy need not be a member of the Company.

A proxy may only be appointed using the procedures set out in these notes and the enclosed proxy form. To appoint a proxy, a member
must complete, sign and date the enclosed proxy form and deposit it at the office of the Company’s Registrars, Capita Registrars, PXS,
34 Beckenham Road, Beckenham, Kent BR3 4TU by 12.00 noon on 12 October 2011. Any power of attorney or any other authority
under which the proxy form is signed (or a duly certified copy of such power or authority) must be enclosed with the proxy form.

In  order  to  revoke  a  proxy  appointment,  a  member  must  sign  and  date  a  notice  clearly  stating  his  intention  to  revoke  his  proxy
appointment and deposit it at the office of the Company’s Registrars, Capita Registrars, PXS, 34 Beckenham Road, Beckenham, Kent
BR3 4TU by 12.00 noon on 12 October 2011.

CREST members who wish to appoint a proxy or proxies by utilising the CREST electronic proxy appointment service may do so in
relation to the meeting, and any adjournment(s) thereof, by utilising the procedures described in the CREST Manual. In order for a
proxy appointment made by means of CREST to be valid, the appropriate CREST message must be transmitted so as to be received by
the Company’s registrars, Capita Registrars (whose CREST ID is RA10) by the latest time for receipt of proxy appointments specified
in note 2 above. For this purpose, the time of receipt will be taken to be the time (as determined by the timestamp applied to the
message by the CREST Applications Host) from which the Company’s agent is able to retrieve the message by enquiry to CREST in the
manner prescribed. The Company may treat as invalid a CREST Proxy Instruction in the circumstances set out in Regulation 35(5)(a)
of the Uncertificated Securities Regulations 2001.

Any corporation which is a member of the Company may authorise a person (who need not be a member of the Company) to attend,
speak and vote at the meeting as the representative of that corporation. A certified copy of the Board resolution of the corporation
appointing the relevant person as the representative of that corporation in connection with the meeting must be deposited at the office
of the Company’s Registrars prior to the commencement of the meeting.

Only those persons whose names are entered on the register of members of the Company at 6 p.m. on 12 October 2011 shall be
entitled to attend and vote in respect of the number of shares registered in their names at that time. Changes to entries on the register
of members after that time shall be disregarded in determining the rights of any person to attend and/or vote at the meeting. 

The return of a completed proxy form, other such instrument or any CREST proxy instruction (see note 4) does not preclude you from
attending the meeting and voting in person. If you have appointed a proxy and attend the meeting in person, your proxy appointment
will automatically be terminated.

Surface Transforms plc
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
36

Printed by Michael Searle & Son Limited

Surface Transforms plc
Unit 4
Olympic Park
Poole Hall Road
Ellesmere Port
Cheshire CH66 1ST
Tel: 0151 356 2141