Nickel-Electro

What Nickel-Electro does

Nickel-Electro Ltd is a privately held UK manufacturer of laboratory equipment and metalware, headquartered in Weston-super-Mare, North Somerset, and operating continuously since 1946. The company designs and produces precision temperature control solutions under its Clifton Range brand — including unstirred, stirred, boiling, shaking, and ultrasonic water baths, hotplates, mixers, drying ovens, incubators, immersion coolers, and steam sterilisers — alongside a Metalware Range of beakers, crucibles, forceps, spatulas, tongs, test tube racks, and similar lab hardware. Differentiated offerings include proprietary multi-chamber architectures (DuoBaths™, TripleBaths™, DeepChamberBath™), Bath Armor™ corrosion-inhibiting bath beads, and NE8 incubators insulated with sheep's wool.

The business operates a direct-to-buyer hardware sales model through its own website, distributing product brochures and catalogues digitally with pricing provided on a quote basis. Customer segments span scientific and research laboratories (primary), educational institutions, and industrial/quality control laboratories, with an emphasis on UK-based manufacturing under ISO 9001 certification and Made in Britain membership. The company markets through its website, LinkedIn, and YouTube channels, emphasising product longevity (10–20+ years), sustainable UK sourcing (claimed 50–90% reduction in transport emissions), and high material recovery rates. No external investors, funding rounds, or M&A activity are recorded, and ownership remains privately held.

Scale indicators place the company at 11–50 employees, consistent with a focused niche manufacturer rather than a broad-line scientific instrument supplier. The product portfolio demonstrates continued extension (new incubators, consumable accessories, multi-chamber baths) but with no disclosed revenue, geographic expansion beyond the UK, or AI/ML capability, the business profile is that of a stable, mature SME rather than a high-growth technology entrant.

Name

Nickel-Electro

Legal name

Nickel-Electro Ltd

Website

https://nickel-electro.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1946

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Nickel-Electro Ltd is a UK-based manufacturer, founded 1946, designing and producing precision temperature control laboratory equipment (water baths, incubators, ovens, mixers) and lab metalware under the Clifton Range and Metalware Range brands for scientific, educational, and industrial customers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Laboratory Equipment Manufacturing

NAICS

Analytical Laboratory Instrument Manufacturing (334516)

SIC

Laboratory Apparatus & Furniture (3821)

akta.pro primary industry

Industrial Furnaces, Kilns & Thermal Processing Equipment (IMAHAEAE)

Keywords

• Laboratory water baths
• Laboratory temperature control
• Laboratory metalware
• Laboratory incubators
• Scientific equipment manufacturing

Headquarters

HQ city

Weston-super-mare

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Laboratory Equipment Manufacturing and Sales: Nickel-Electro generates revenue through the design, manufacture, and sale of laboratory temperature control equipment and metalware under the Clifton Range brand. Products include water baths, hotplates, mixers, ovens, incubators, and laboratory metalware sold directly to scientific institutions and industrial laboratories.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Nickel-Electro designs and manufactures laboratory equipment and metalware in the UK under the Clifton Range and Metalware Range brands. Its offerings centre on precision temperature control solutions for laboratories — including unstirred, stirred, boiling, shaking, and ultrasonic water baths; hotplates; mixers; drying ovens and incubators; immersion coolers; and steam sterilisers — alongside a comprehensive line of laboratory metalware such as beakers, crucibles, forceps, spatulas, and test tube racks. Products are built in-house at the company's Weston-super-Mare facility and sold directly to scientific, educational, and industrial laboratory customers.

Product overview

Nickel-Electro is a UK-based manufacturer of laboratory equipment and metalware, offering two core product lines: the Clifton Range (precision temperature control solutions) and the Metalware Range (durable laboratory hardware). The Clifton Range encompasses unstirred water baths (NE1, NE1D, NE2D, NE3DT, DuoBaths, TripleBaths, ShallowBaths, DeepChamberBath), stirred water baths (NE4-SB, NE4-D, NE4-D/CT, NE4-T, NE4-P, NE4-HT), boiling water baths, shaking water baths, ultrasonic baths, hotplates, mixers (roller and vortex), ovens, incubators, immersion coolers, and steam sterilisers. The Metalware Range includes beakers, buckets, crucibles, dishes, forceps, funnels, various spatulas, lab spoons, sampling products, sterilising boxes, test tube racks, tongs, and tripods. The company emphasises UK manufacturing, sustainability through reduced carbon footprint, and equipment longevity.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Clifton Range: Engineered for labs that need temperature control they can trust. The Clifton Range is designed and built in the UK by Nickel-Electro Ltd, focusing on high quality manufacturing for reliable equipment.
• Metalware Range

Products and services

• NE1 Standard Analogue Baths Entry-level unstirred water bath with analogue temperature control designed for basic laboratory heating applications in scientific and educational settings.
• NE1D Educational Digital Baths Digital unstirred water bath designed for educational settings, featuring simplified temperature controls suited to student and teaching-lab use.
• NE2D Advanced Digital Baths Advanced digital unstirred water bath with enhanced temperature precision intended for demanding laboratory applications.
• NE3DT Pro Digital Baths Professional digital unstirred water bath with integrated timing functions for automated laboratory workflows.
• DuoBaths™ Proprietary double-chamber unstirred water bath enabling simultaneous heating at two different temperatures within a single benchtop unit.
• TripleBaths™ Proprietary triple-chamber unstirred water bath designed for applications requiring three independent temperature zones in parallel.
• ShallowBaths™ Low-profile unstirred water bath designed for shallow vessel immersion and reduced-volume laboratory applications.
• ShallowBath™ with Bath Armor™ Shallow water bath equipped with Bath Armor™ corrosion protection beads to extend equipment life and reduce mineral deposit build-up.
• NE1-25 DeepChamberBath™ Deep-chamber unstirred water bath with a 25-litre capacity for larger vessel immersion and higher-volume temperature control applications.
• NE4-SB Universal Heated Thermostirrer Heated stirred bath combining precision temperature control with integrated magnetic stirring for laboratory workflows requiring agitation.
• NE4-D Classic Digital Baths Digital stirred water bath with circulation for uniform temperature distribution across the bath volume.
• NE4-D/CT Clear Tank Digital Baths Digital stirred bath featuring a transparent tank that allows visual monitoring of samples during temperature-controlled workflows.
• NE4-T General Analogue Baths Analogue thermostatic stirred bath providing straightforward temperature control for routine laboratory applications.
• NE4-P Circulating Digital Baths Digital circulating bath for external circulation applications, enabling temperature control of external apparatus connected to the bath.
• NE4-HT High Temp. Circulating Baths High-temperature circulating bath designed for demanding laboratory applications requiring temperatures above standard bath ranges.
• Analogue Boiling Baths Simple analogue-controlled boiling water bath for laboratory applications requiring temperatures at or near boiling.
• Digital Boiling Baths Digitally controlled boiling water bath for precise temperature maintenance at elevated laboratory temperatures.
• 1000 Series Round Boiling Baths Round-format boiling water bath in the 1000 series designed for compatibility with cylindrical laboratory vessels.
• 1100 Series Rectangular Boiling Baths Rectangular-format boiling water bath in the 1100 series sized for standard laboratory glassware.
• Analogue Shaking Baths Shaking water bath with analogue controls providing combined heating and agitation for laboratory workflows.
• Digital Shaking Baths Digitally controlled shaking water bath with programmable agitation and temperature parameters for automated workflows.
• SW Ultrasonic Baths Ultrasonic cleaning bath designed for gentle yet effective cleaning and sample preparation in laboratory environments.
• Analogue Hotplates Simple analogue-controlled heating plates for basic laboratory heating applications.
• Digital Hotplates Digitally controlled hotplates featuring precise temperature regulation and display for laboratory workflows.
• MXS-10 Roller Mixer Roller mixer providing gentle rocking motion for mixing tubes and bottles in laboratory workflows.
• CM-1 Cyclone Vortex Mixer Vortex mixer delivering high-speed sample agitation via centrifugal force for laboratory sample preparation.
• CM-2 Cyclone+ Vortex Mixer Enhanced vortex mixer with additional features supporting versatile laboratory mixing applications.
• Drying Ovens (NE9 Series) NE9 series digital laboratory drying ovens designed for thermal drying and heating applications in laboratory environments.
• Incubators (NE8 Series) NE8 series digital laboratory incubators featuring natural sheep's wool insulation for energy-efficient biological incubation.
• NE1V Lab Oven/Incubators Combination oven and incubator unit offering versatile temperature control for dual-mode laboratory operation.
• NE1M-25 Mini Incubator Compact NE1M-25 mini incubator designed for space-constrained applications and small-scale laboratory incubation.
• DC1-300 Immersion Cooler Immersion cooler for counter-cooling applications and maintaining low temperatures in laboratory workflows.
• KS Koch Steam Sterilisers Steam sterilisation equipment for decontamination of laboratory glassware and materials.
• Bath Armor™ – Bath Beads Proprietary corrosion-inhibiting bath beads that protect laboratory water baths from mineral deposits and extend equipment life.
• SM-1 Student Spirometer Educational spirometer for teaching pulmonary function measurement techniques in school and university settings.
• Metalware Range Comprehensive line of laboratory metalware — beakers, buckets, crucibles and lids, dishes/lids and bowls, forceps, funnels and jugs, retort rods and bases, spatulas, lab spoons, sampling products, sterilising boxes, test tube racks, tongs, and tripods — manufactured in durable, high-performance metals for rigorous laboratory environments.

Quantifiable outcome

• 50–90% reduction in transport-related emissions when sourcing UK made equipment instead of overseas imports
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• PolyScience: US-based manufacturer of temperature control products including circulating baths, chillers, and immersion circulators serving laboratory, life science, and industrial markets. Direct comparable in precision bath and circulator technology.
• Peter Huber Kältemaschinenbau: German manufacturer of high-precision temperature control systems including heating/cooling circulators, chillers, and baths for laboratory and industrial applications. Closely comparable in technology and customer base to Nickel-Electro's thermal control range.
• Grant Instruments: UK-based manufacturer of laboratory water baths, block heaters, incubators, ovens, and circulators targeting the same scientific, educational, and industrial lab customers as Nickel-Electro. Both compete directly in the precision temperature control niche with overlapping Clifton/Grant product positioning.
• Benchmark Scientific: US-based laboratory equipment manufacturer offering water baths, hotplates, mixers, centrifuges, and incubators. Comparable mid-sized niche manufacturer competing in similar product categories to Nickel-Electro.
• Julabo GmbH: German specialist manufacturer of temperature control solutions including circulating baths, heating/cooling circulators, and recirculating chillers serving research and industrial laboratories globally. Direct competitor in precision temperature control equipment for lab applications.
• Stuart Equipment (Cole-Parmer): Long-standing UK brand of laboratory water baths, hotplates, stirrers, incubators, and rockers, now part of Cole-Parmer. Highly comparable product line to Nickel-Electro's Clifton Range with similar target customers in research, QC, and education.
• Boekel Scientific: US manufacturer of laboratory and medical equipment including water baths, incubators, dry baths, and blood bank equipment. Directly comparable product portfolio to Clifton Range with similar laboratory customer focus.

Broad incumbents

• Thermo Fisher Scientific: Global life sciences and laboratory equipment giant offering a vast portfolio of water baths, incubators, ovens, mixers, and temperature control systems as part of its broader lab products and services division. Overlaps with Clifton Range but as one of many product categories.
• Eppendorf: German-headquartered global manufacturer of laboratory equipment including incubators, shakers, mixers, and temperature control devices for life science research. Broad incumbent offering overlapping functionality with Nickel-Electro's range.

Emerging players

• VELP Scientifica: Italian manufacturer of laboratory equipment including overhead stirrers, hotplate stirrers, water baths, and analytical instruments. Comparable European mid-sized lab equipment specialist with overlapping product categories and similar target customers.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks4 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@nickel-electro4838
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/nickel-electro-ltd

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Nickel-Electro