FILTRATION systems group domnick hunter has unveiled record sales for the first half of the year.

The company said sales of its products rose by 37 per cent to £50.4m in the six months to June 30, up from £36.9m at the same stage last year.

Chairman Brian Thompson said the period had seen "buoyant trading" with a strong recovery in core business and significant contributions from overseas activities.

The group, which employs more than 1,200 people worldwide, including 800 at its headquarters on the Team Valley Trading Estate in Gateshead, said its domnick hunter Hiross Italian operation had performed particularly well.

The division manufactures refrigeration dryers under the Compir brand.

Its success enabled the company to sign contracts with the world's largest compressor manufacturer Ingersoll-Rand, for its European compressed air treatment requirements.

Eighty per cent of domnick hunter's trade is overseas, with 45 per cent in Europe, 20 per cent in North America and 15 per cent in the growing Asian markets.

Overall new business contracts at the group are expected to account for around 15 per cent of turnover in 2001.

The group is currently working on a number of new projects, including a nuclear, biological and chemical initiative for the Ministry of Defence (MoD).

It involves the replacement of the carbon canisters in tanks and personnel carriers, which soak up the harmful bacteria in chemical weapons.

Tyneside tank builder Vickers is already believed to be showing an interest in the canisters for inclusion in its future vehicles.

Chief executive Colin Billiet said: "We are currently working on a regenerative form of the carbon canisters for the MoD for personnel carriers and tanks. Because they are regenerative, they just have to be put in once, and then refurbished every so often."

Domnick hunter pre-tax profits for the six months to June 30 were £4.5m, up from £3.1m