WESTBROOK-based testing firm AlphaBiolabs is celebrating a record year thanks to an increased demand for its drug and alcohol testing in the workplace.

The company, which performs the DNA tests for ITV’s The Jeremy Kyle Show, has seen revenues rise 16 per cent to £4.2 million after securing a number of contracts in the transport, manufacturing and local government sectors.

David Thomas, AlphaBiolabs’ founder and managing director, said the company is gaining from continued investment to expand its services, workforce and laboratory equipment.

He said: “We are delighted to achieve our highest annual sales.

“We are really seeing the benefits of our investment in workplace testing, scram cam and other areas of the business.

“This gives us great confidence for the future and we are aiming to double in size over the next three years, by further expanding our range of services in the UK and overseas, and by developing our network of sample collectors and walk-in centres.”

AlphaBiolabs was founded in 2004 and carries out DNA and drug and alcohol testing for individuals, businesses, solicitors, social services, the media and universities.

It was the first UKAS ISO 17025 accredited laboratory to introduce a next-day DNA testing service, which helped earn AlphaBiolabs a Queen’s Award for Innovation in 2016.

Based on Carina Park in Westbrook, it has 45 staff and one of the largest laboratories of its kind in Europe. The lab has also developed state-of-the-art techniques to provide an accurate historical record of drug or alcohol abuse where hair strands, oral fluids, urine and fingernails can all be tested.

It operates nine walk-in centres around the country which provide access to the company’s testing services and convenient sites for sample collections.

The firm has recently expanded into Ireland with the launch of a website and office in Dublin.