Client Testimonials
Thar Technologies
“The best thing about working with Watson Buckle is that I don’t have to worry about anything”: that’s how Thar Technologies’ vice-president Brian Moyer describes his company’s successful collaboration with Watson Buckle partner David Warren and his team.
It’s a comment any accountancy firm would welcome from a client so the fact that Brian is thousands of miles away, at Thar’s headquarters in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, further underlines the success of the relationship.
Established in 1990, Thar is leader in the specialist field of supercritical fluid technology, an environmentally friendly alternative to solvent-based processing used in the pharmaceutical, food, chemicals and electronics industries. With a global reputation for its work – which has led to 15 patents, with more than 20 pending – expansion overseas was a logical step and in 2005, Thar began the process of setting up drug development company Thar Pharma at the University of Bradford.
Brian was introduced to David through a contact at the university as a potential source of accountancy services for Thar Pharma. He says: “David did an excellent job of his presentation and I had a good feeling about working with him, right off the bat.”
Watson Buckle supports Thar Pharma on issues including monthly management accounts, payroll, tax and pensions and provided similar and additional services to a second UK-based company, Thar Instruments Ltd, which Thar sold early in 2009. Brian explains: “As a company manufacturing and selling scientific instruments, Thar Instruments’ accounts were more complex than those of Thar Pharma, with additional importing, invoicing and VAT issues. VAT is a complex issue that most US-based companies do not have to deal with, and David and his team did a great and expedient job of handling it and simplifying it for us.”
Brian appreciates David’s willingness to “go the extra mile” for Thar, from assisting with incorporation to facilitating numerous other third party relationships such as those with bankers, insurance agents and real estate specialists and even accountancies in other European countries when Thar continued its expansion in Europe. .
He says: “David has a lot of key relationships in both the public and private sectors. He makes useful connections and has taken care of absolutely everything from a finance and tax perspective.
“Watson Buckle are very responsive and a tremendous resource, with excellent knowledge across a broad spectrum and access to other specialists if necessary. Accounting firms seem to do much more in the UK than in the US. That’s a great perk for foreign firms here – you can get everything set up and get operations running, dealing with the same people.
“Working with David gives such peace of mind. We are thousands of miles away from Bradford and five hours behind, so we have to trust that our work is done timely and well, but we have never had any concerns with David and his team.
“Watson Buckle are very reasonably priced, too. I’ve never felt we’re paying too much – if anything, I feel we have taken advantage of them, because they do such a great job of going above and beyond the call of duty. That even extends to David getting tickets for a Manchester United game for me the last time I was in England, even though they were like gold dust, because he knows I am a football fan.
“We’ve developed a professional relationship with the firm and a personal relationship with David and I know they will do everything they can to make us successful. That’s the type of guy and type of firm they are and I would recommend them to anyone going into the UK.”