Novocomms strategic overhaul in Birmingham is paving the way for growth, AIoT innovation and employment

Novocomms, the specialist in antenna design and manufacturing in the UK, has revealed its restructuring efforts as a component of its growth strategy for the next five years, which encompasses the creation of three manufacturing divisions.

According to the company, these plans hold the potential to generate as many as 300 new jobs in Birmingham.

Under the umbrella of Novocomms Group, the three freshly established enterprises are as follows: Novocomms Wireless Antenna, Novocomms Mobile Satellite Solutions, and Novocomms Smart Cities. They will respectively focus on the consumer electronics, commercial and defense satellite, and urban connectivity markets.

“We believe that through better design, we can reduce the bill of materials cost, reduce power consumption and also the weight of a next-generation series of mmWave and mobile satellite antennas,” said CEO, CTO and founder of Novocomms Group Sampson Hu. “The industry is hungry for better performance technology that is also eco-friendly and we think we can fulfil that desire.”

Wireless antenna division: Headed by Sampson Hu and Peter Hall, the Consumer Electronics branch will leverage Novocomms’ existing technology, honed over the past four years, to further its progress.

Mobile satellite solutions division: Sampson Hu will also spearhead the Mobile Satellite Solutions division, with support from Peter Gardner. This division specializes in the development and manufacturing of millimeter-wave (mmWave) and high-performance mobile satellite antennas for the commercial, automotive, infrastructure, and defense sectors.

Smart cities division: Founder and CEO Johann Tse will lead the Smart Cities division. Novocomms positions this sector as a rapidly expanding global market, with a focus on developing new technology ecosystems and AIoT solutions.

“Our research points to a significant demand over the next five years for AI technologies that are integrated into IoT systems,” said Tse. “Our experience of sophisticated antenna design, backed up by Novocomms’ experience in satellite and 5G technology puts us in a prime position to develop and manufacture this type of product.”

“As a former director and CEO of Hutchison 3G, and one of the three founding directors of Orange plc, I’ve seen how UK companies can dominate specific niches within electronics and communications,” said Novocomms chairman, Professor Colin Tucker.”

“Novocomms, in my opinion, is one such company that has the people, the vision and the know-how to become the dominant force in antenna design and manufacture in the consumer electronics, mobile satellite and smart city sectors.”

The company aims to recruit additional engineers and salespeople, relocate to new offices, and generate 100 job opportunities by September 2025. Within the next six months, it anticipates creating up to 30 of these positions. Unfortunately, the exact funding amount was not disclosed.

The company is headquartered in the West Midlands, UK, with its origins rooted in research conducted at the University of Birmingham. It has acquired technology licenses from the university and cultivated a portfolio of proprietary intellectual property. Furthermore, it maintains research and development centers in both Birmingham and Suzhou, China.