ShapeSpace which offers 3D search for computer aided design (CAD) and product lifecycle management (PLM) has also launched its new website which details iseveral case study savings with customers. It has also appointed Avenquest ProcessFlows as its UK distributor.

Dr Andrew Sherlock, founder and CEO (extreme right, with Research and International Awards manager of The Royal Society of Edinburgh Anne Fraser)  notes “Engineering companies, such as motor and aerospace manufacturers, invest heavily in product design and in systems to help them create, manage, store and process product data. But typically, these systems provide only basic search and retrieval tools, so opportunities are regularly missed to re-use designs or to rationalise existing parts libraries.

"Using ShapeSpace allows an organisation to ‘wring more’ from their existing investments in product design, ultimately delivering a higher level of customer service and profitability, a message very much aligned with Avanquest ProcessFlows’ philosophy.”

ProcessFlows MD Chris Thompson added “We are excited to be working with ShapeSpace to bring benefits to engineering companies. ShapeSpace represents a fantastic opportunity for a select group of our channel partners to offer a step- change in 3D storage and retrieval to their customers.’’

ShapeSpace now partering with AESSIS, with US Andover based Aras Corp, and UK's Value Driven Design,  the small Edinburgh University spin-off company looks to be stretching its wings.

Different soft social search dimension
The Edinburgh-based Easydate, headed by Scottish software tycoon Bill Dobbie (right), is one of a handful of quoted internet dating firms in the world, debuted on AIM at the end of June, with few analysts specialising in this niche sector.

Dobbie (left) has an highly intriguing affiliates multiple revenue model, one sector feeding forward to another, as in dating services to gaming and gambling. Easydate is classified in the recreational sub-sector of travel and leisure companies, but attracts interest from analysts specialising in media and internet stocks.

Easydate is predicted to have a full-year pre-tax profits of £5m on revenues just under £20m up from last year profits of £2.3m on £9.6m turnover.

Easydate's portfolio of 15 niche dating portals, acquired two new ones this month with PlanetSappho.com and Spanish-language Granamor.

The company's rapid growth - revenues rose 85% last year - is expecting similar expansion for the next three years. Easydate currently adds an average of about 200,000 new members a month. Globally, internet dating is a multi-billion pound market. But few firms operating in this area are  publicly listed companies.

Apart from UK's Easydate, major quoted players include Meetic of France and the US IAC (the parent company of Match.com) and Spark Networks. Shares in Easydate, which were listed at 60p, closed Friday's trading at 84p each.