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This is the FT’s seventh annual ranking of Europe’s fastest growing companies, which recognizes companies with fast, organic and sustainable growth. It is compiled in collaboration with Statista, the market data experts.

The information is already available online. It will be officially released and published on the financial timesalong with a detailed report, on March 21.

In the manufacturing sector, Fractory is the third fastest growing company in Europe and the fastest growing in the UK.

Additionally, Fractory is the highest ranked business on the list operating from the Northwest.

Fractory is one of the famous Estonian high-growth start-ups. It was founded in 2017 in Estonia, where it still operates from the country’s two main cities, Tallinn and Tartu. It also has offices in Turku, Finland. Its Manchester headquarters opened in 2019 at Bonded Warehouse in Enterprise City, where a team of 20 British engineers work, overseeing large projects, quality control and logistics for the many companies that use Fratory for their manufacturing procurement needs.

“Fractory is growing rapidly and it’s great to see it being recognized,” he says Martin Vares, co-founder and CEO of Fractory. “Our success is due in large part to our base in Manchester. It is a remarkable center for manufacturing and entrepreneurship, the ideal home for a growing business in our industry.

“The time frame considered for this year’s FT ranking, 2018-2021, includes the Covid crisis, when Fractory took off. Tough times exposed vulnerabilities in existing supply chains, and we had a solution for that, being able to use our extensive established network of suppliers,” explains Martin, who is an industry advisory board member at Manchester Metropolitan University. “Crucially, after the pandemic, Fratory continues to grow,” he adds.

Fractory is an online platform that connects engineers with production capabilities. It has automated the manufacturing procurement process so engineers simply upload design files for instant quotes and lead times, with Fractory taking responsibility for every aspect of the order. Customers also use Fratory for series manufacturing, project manufacturing, and prototyping.

The rankings are based on fully audited accounts and consider revenue growth in the three years to 2021, in which Fractory’s revenue grew from less than a quarter of a million euros to more than six and a half million euros. The same time period shows a compound annual growth rate of 209.4%.

In the FT/Statista ranking, London has remained the city with the highest number of fast-growing companies, for the seventh consecutive year, with 83 companies listed, followed by Paris (34) and Milan (33).