What BTTG does

BTTG (legal entity Shirley Technologies Limited) is a UK-headquartered, privately held textile testing, certification and auditing company serving global manufacturers of personal protective equipment, construction products, marine equipment and technical textiles. Founded circa 1918 and headquartered in Manchester with a major laboratory in Leeds, it is recognised as UK Approved Body 0338 (since 1 January 2021) and operates EU Notified Body 2895 through sister entity Shirley Europe in Ireland, enabling it to issue both UKCA and CE marking from a single assessment. The company holds UKAS accreditation under ISO/IEC 17025, 17021-1 and 17065, and operates proprietary assets including the RALPH and SOPHIE thermal manikins used since 1989 for full-flame engulfment testing; it is one of only three laboratories worldwide accredited to the FIA 8856-2018 motor sport standard and the only UK lab accredited to ISO 16604 viral penetration testing.

BTTG operates a one-stop-shop, B2B professional services model sold directly to enterprise clients via expert consultation, with revenue streams from physical and chemical testing, product certification (UKCA, CE, Red Ensign, OEKO-TEX), Factory Production Control auditing, and ancillary services such as investigation, seminars and club memberships. Pricing combines transactional per-test fees, fixed certification engagements and recurring annual club memberships (£95 per non-member seminar vs free for members). The company reaches customers through a 16-office, 10-country network spanning the UK, Ireland, Bangladesh, China, India, Kenya, Pakistan, Singapore, Vietnam and the USA, with exports representing over 50% of trade and active service to 80+ countries.

The customer base is diversified across enterprise PPE manufacturers (e.g., Bristol Uniforms, DSM Protective Materials, Gibb Safety and Survival), technical textile producers (Tarasafe, Global Synthetics, Pinnacle Fiber), and geosynthetics firms (Bontex Geo). Recurring-revenue mechanisms include the BTTG Club and PPE Club membership programmes and the online Report Verification System. The workforce of 51-100 employees shows 12-year average tenure and 53% female representation, and leadership has emphasised organic growth and standards-committee participation rather than external capital; no public funding rounds, acquisitions or PE backing have been disclosed.

Name

BTTG

Legal name

Shirley Technologies Limited

Website

https://www.bttg.co.uk/index.php

Company type

Private

Founded year

1918

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

BTTG is a UK-based accredited laboratory (Shirley Technologies Limited) providing textile testing, UKCA/CE certification and auditing for PPE, construction, marine and technical-textile manufacturers globally. It serves enterprise clients in 80+ countries through 16 offices and holds Approved Body 0338 and Notified Body 2895 status.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Textile Testing and Certification Services

NAICS

Testing Laboratories and Services (541380)

SIC

Services-Testing Laboratories (8734)

akta.pro primary industry

Testing, Inspection, Certification & Commissioning (TICx) Technical Services (BPAHAIAL)

akta.pro secondary industry

Conformity Assessment, Testing, Inspection & Certification Cooperation (BPADANAD)

Keywords

• Textile testing services
• PPE certification
• Product certification auditing
• Quality assurance testing
• Fire safety testing

Headquarters

HQ city

Leeds

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices17 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Testing Services: Physical and chemical testing of textiles, PPE, construction products, marine equipment, fire testing, and manikin testing services for manufacturers seeking certification.
2. Certification Services: UKCA and CE marking certification services for PPE, Construction Products, and Marine Equipment through UK Approved Body 0338 and EU Notified Body 2895.
3. Auditing Services: Factory Production Control (FPC) audits and certification audits for quality management systems and product certification schemes.
4. Club Memberships: BTTG Club and PPE Club membership programs offering exclusive benefits including expert guidance, report verification, webinars, and seminars.
5. OEKO-TEX Certification: Through Shirley brand - STANDARD 100 by OEKO-TEX, MADE IN GREEN, ECO PASSPORT, and PPE Supplement certification services.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

BTTG is a UK Approved Body (0338) and EU Notified Body partner (through sister company Shirley® Europe, No. 2895) that provides testing, certification, and auditing services for PPE, textiles, construction products, technical textiles, and marine equipment. The company operates as a one-stop shop, enabling dual UKCA and CE marking through a single assessment, and serves manufacturers in over 80 countries through 16 offices in 10 countries.

Product overview

BTTG® is a textile testing, certification, and auditing company providing a one-stop-shop approach with integrated services. The core offerings include Testing Services (PPE, Manikin, Textile, Floor Coverings, Fire, Industrial Materials, Technical, and Marine Testing), Certification Services (UKCA Marking, Construction Products, Marine Equipment), Auditing Services, and Investigation Services. The company also offers membership programs (BTTG® Club and PPE Club) with exclusive benefits including access to technical experts, report verification systems, and seminars. A Report Verification System provides authenticated access to issued reports. Through sister organization Shirley® (Europe), the company offers OEKO-TEX® certification and CE marking services.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Testing Services Comprehensive physical and chemical testing services for textiles, PPE, manikin testing, floor coverings, fire testing, industrial materials, technical testing, and marine testing. Services cover materials to ASTM, BS, EN, ISO, and FIA standards.
• Certification Services Product certification services including UKCA Marking for PPE, Construction Products certification, and Red Ensign Marking of Marine Equipment, with UKAS accreditation under BS EN ISO/IEC 17065:2012 and dual UKCA/CE marking through single assessment.
• Auditing Services Comprehensive auditing services covering quality management systems (ISO/IEC 17021-1:2015) and product certification schemes (BS EN ISO/IEC 17065:2012) across PPE, construction products, and marine equipment sectors. Single-assessment audits cover both CE and UKCA requirements.
• Investigation Services Technical and legal investigation services for textile-related disputes, product failure analysis, and regulatory compliance matters.
• OEKO-TEX® Certification Services OEKO-TEX® product certification services offered through Shirley® brand including STANDARD 100 by OEKO-TEX, MADE IN GREEN, ECO PASSPORT, and PPE Supplement, addressing chemical safety and sustainability compliance for textile manufacturers.
• BTTG® Club Membership Annual subscription membership providing up to four hours of expert guidance, access to standards updates, online report verification system, live video streaming of tests, signed membership certificate, and access to webinars and seminars.
• BTTG® PPE Club Membership Annual subscription membership tailored for PPE industry professionals, offering benefits including free storage of testing samples, photographing of tested specimens, access to PPE-specific seminars, and exclusive expert consultations.

Quantifiable outcome

• Dual UKCA and CE marking through single assessment reduces certification time and costs
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Shirley® (Europe)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 19 September 2023Shirley® (Europe) in Ireland is EU Notified Body no. 2895, authorised to award CE marking for PPE Regulation (EU) 2016/425. Through a single assessment with BTTG® (UK Approved Body 0338), clients can receive both UKCA and CE marking, enabling sales across both UK and EU markets.
• OEKO-TEX® AssociationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerShirley® has been a proud member of the OEKO-TEX® Association for over 30 years, serving as a one-stop shop for all OEKO-TEX® products and certification services including STANDARD 100, MADE IN GREEN, and ECO PASSPORT.

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves11 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Intertek: Global TIC major with textile, apparel, and footwear testing services via its Consumer Goods business — directly competes with BTTG for PPE and softlines certification work but as part of a much broader portfolio.
• Bureau Veritas: International TIC group with consumer products and softlines testing covering textiles, PPE, and construction products — comparable service offering to BTTG but materially larger and more diversified across industries.
• SGS Société Générale de Surveillance: World's largest testing, inspection, and certification company with a global Softlines division covering textile, apparel, and PPE — overlaps with BTTG's full service portfolio but operates at vastly greater scale and across many end-markets beyond textiles.
• TÜV SÜD: Global certification and testing body with dedicated softlines/PPE capabilities and CE/UKCA conformity services — competes for the same textile and PPE manufacturer clients as BTTG but as part of a much larger multi-industry TIC operation.

Direct peers

• IFTH (Institut Français du Textile et de l'Habillement): French textile and clothing technical institute providing testing, certification, and R&D services for apparel and PPE manufacturers — competes with BTTG in the European specialized textile TICx segment.
• Centexbel: Belgian textile and plastics research center offering testing, certification, and standards-based conformity services to textile and technical-textile manufacturers across Europe — directly comparable specialized TICx offering to BTTG.
• AITEX (Asociación de Investigación de la Industria Textil): Spanish textile research institute providing testing, certification, and R&D services to European textile and PPE manufacturers — comparable specialized textile/PPE TICx services to BTTG with overlapping EU customer base.
• Testex (Swiss Textile Testing): Swiss OEKO-TEX member institute providing textile and PPE testing, certification, and STANDARD 100/ECOPASSPORT services globally — operates in the same specialized TICx textile niche as BTTG and serves many of the same Asia/Europe manufacturing customers.
• Hohenstein Institute: German-based textile testing and research institute offering OEKO-TEX certification, PPE/UV/protective clothing testing, and laboratory services to global textile and apparel manufacturers — directly comparable to BTTG across softlines/PPE testing and certification.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Compliance6 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles15 records

Subsidiaries1 record

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 BTTG