Award-winning Diss firm continues to expand

A MULTI-NATIONAL data management company, which began life in a spare bedroom, has pledged its future to Diss as it prepares to move into new offices.

A MULTI-NATIONAL data management company, which began life in a spare bedroom, has pledged its future to Diss as it prepares to move into new offices.

Syne qua non was formed by three directors in Diss 13 years ago and has grown to be one of the town's biggest employers with 120 staff.

The company, which provides clinical data management and bio-statistical services to the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries, is preparing for a new era next month when it moves to new premises on the Diss Business Park.

The relocation from its offices in Mere Street, Diss, comes two months after the firm was presented with the Queen's Award for Enterprise.

The business, which has a turnover of �5m, was formed by Roger Ashby, Tony Rees, and Karen Grover in 1996, and works for companies across the globe in providing data analysis for clinical drug trials.

Despite the recession, Syne qua non is still recruiting after benefiting from new orders after getting royal recognition.

Tony Rees, director, said the firm, which included staff from across Europe and Asia, was also a big employer of local people.

He said the company had been 'rushed off its feet' since securing the Queen's Award for Enterprise and it would have 'considerable scope' to grow after the move to the Diss Business Park in November. He added that the only disadvantage of being based in Diss was the slow broadband speeds.

'Even though the general worldwide economy has touched us, we are continuing to invest in our staff and new technologies and we are still growing.'

'In the early days, recruiting people to Norfolk was a bit of a challenge, but we found marketing the lifestyle that Norfolk has to offer has been quite a positive incentive in bringing people into the area. We are ahead of our time for 'World Class Norfolk',' he said.