A £230,695 South West Growth Fund grant has helped to create 21 new high level jobs in Penryn.

Internationally renowned creator of audio mixing systems, Allen & Heath secured the funding to refit part of its building into a state-of-the-art research and development (R&D) centre.

The Penryn-based firm is one of the ambitious South West businesses now benefiting from the South West Growth Fund, an £8.7million fund that is set to create 1,136 new jobs. Ninety businesses across the region, from Gloucestershire to Cornwall, have now received grants of up to £1million to improve infrastructure and accelerate their growth.

With a heritage incorporating Genesis, Pink Floyd and The Who, Allen & Heath products have been used by stars including Adele, Pete Tong, Frank Ocean, Morrissey and Rita Ora, as well as being installed in clubs, studios, theatres and houses of worship across the globe. Allen & Heath is part of Audiotonix, a UK group of pro audio companies, which also comprises the other leading brands, Calrec and DiGiCo.

Through the South West Growth Fund investment, the firm has appointed 15 new engineers and four members of its technical product marketing team. Four of the new recruits are University of Plymouth graduates.

The firm now has 52 R&D engineers, developing new products for the firm’s global customer base. From its base at Kernick Industrial Estate, the firm is particularly focused on developing new audio systems for venues with multiple spaces, such as conference centres.

Managing director Dr Rob Clark said: “The South West Growth Fund has allowed us to refit our building to create a state-of-the-art R&D centre. It’s a bigger and better space - an amazing building that is perfectly suited to how our engineers work.

“Recruiting people with the right skill set has always been a challenge. Over the last few months, it has been very rewarding to attract new talent to Allen & Heath and to show people that Cornwall is a wonderful place to live and work. We are really fortunate to have the University of Plymouth just down the road, providing us with graduates who are highly skilled in software and hardware engineering. The South West Growth Fund has been a fantastic lever to grow the business.”