MPA sheds light on qualifying activity for Collier Webb
Collier Webb, known for their unique lighting, furniture and hardware, struggled to see which projects qualified for R&D tax credits. They were surprised to see how much they could claim, after speaking with an MPA Technical Analyst.
Collier Webb specialises in the design and manufacture of luxury lighting, furniture and hardware for high-end commercial spaces and private residences. Combining traditional methods of construction with cutting edge technologies enables them to create elegant and versatile products, crafted to the highest standards.
Working in partnership with top designers and architects, Collier Webb turn their creative visions into extraordinary and unique pieces. Due to the ultra-fine quality standards required, most manufacturing is performed at the Collier Webb Foundry using a broad range of metalwork technologies, including machining, sheet metal work, casting, plating and metal colouring.
Geoff Collier Managing Director, Collier WebbIn the course of finding a solution to meet our client’s aspirations, we need to use our years of industry experience to develop and refine techniques to create a piece that complies with the meticulous brief provided. As these projects are paid for by our clients, we were unaware that we could claim for our time spent on them. After meeting with MPA we were pleased to find out that through their experience in our sector, they were able to demonstrate how we could claim for this work as well as our own products.
Although Collier Webb were aware of the R&D tax credit scheme, they were not claiming. Following a meeting with The Lighting Industry Association, a partner of MPA, they decided to explore their eligibility further.
After meeting with a Technical Analyst from MPA, we were surprised by how much of our work we could claim for, and the process of identifying this qualifying activity was made very simple and not as time consuming as we first expected.
Collier Webb are required to continuously enhance their existing processes to deliver exceptional quality pieces to the exact specification of their clients, and working with MPA enabled them to identify and claim for all areas of qualifying activity. Geoff Collier was surprised that process changes qualified for tax credits.
It was not just the product development; we were surprised by how our process changes qualified, and of course being able to claim for client projects made a huge difference to our tax savings.
Collier Webb aren’t alone in their uncertainty around R&D tax credit eligibility; the majority of companies MPA speaks with are unsure that they qualify for the scheme, often believing that they don’t carry out research and development. The key here is that qualifying activity is defined by HMRC guidelines, which MPA experts are well versed in.
To find out if you’re eligible for R&D tax credits, or whether you could be claiming more, get in touch here.
With more than forty years’ experience, Collier Webb are designers and makers of luxury lighting, furniture and hardware for the world’s most beautiful interior spaces.
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