IES specialises in decarbonising the built environment using performance-based digital twin technology that allows designers, planners, developers and managers to assess how their portfolios use energy and where improvements can be made through physics-enabled digital replicas that accurately mimic their real-world counterparts.

The business’s proprietary Digital Twin software has seen the most significant surge in popularity, increasing in revenue by 134% since 2020.

The ICL Digital Twin’s unique combination of physics-based simulation with 3D models, real-time operational data, machine learning and AI makes IES’s solution a market leader.

In the last year, IES has had particular success in the Asian market, with sales in 2020/21 quintupling. The company has welcomed a number of new customers in the region, subscribing to its digital twin tech, including the Malaysian Green Technology and Climate Change Centre (MGTC).

To meet the demands of the business’s growth, 43 new hires have been made since the beginning of 2020, with 65% of new starters joining since June. Among the new talent within IES is global sales director, Richard Fletcher, who previously worked as UK and Ireland business area director for California-based technology company, Trimble.

IES plans to take on approximately 30 more employees in the next four months with a particular focus on software development and testing, building simulation engineers including HVAC specialists, and business development professionals. This will take IES from SME to large company, putting it in the top 1% of Scottish businesses by size.

Don McLean, CEO at IES, said: “It is becoming ever-more evident that climate change and sustainability need to be at the heart of what every organisation does. The built environment, in particular, is accountable for such a huge proportion of the UK’s energy emissions, and the growth we have seen as a firm over the last year is a positive indicator that more and more stakeholders are realising that they need to improve on their current carbon footprints.

“We anticipate Digital Twin technology becoming an essential tool in addressing the climate crisis as it presents dramatic and exciting opportunities to reach net-zero.”

Globally, IES has more than 15,000 users that utilise its technology on more than 75,000 buildings per year amounting to over a million medium to large buildings so far, helping to significantly reduce energy consumption and carbon emissions and to improve the health and wellbeing of building users.