Gordon Watt has lent Pipehawk £535,000 since June on top of the £1.1m put into the company in the previous financial year.

Confirmation of the chairman’s funding came as Pipehawk announced an after-tax loss of £844,000 for the year to June compared to a loss of £398,000 last time. Turnover was down to £2.6m from £3.2m.

Watt said the company suffered from the withdrawal of funding from large infrastructure projects and delays in the AMP5 water programme.

He said: “In March 2010, the Company’s bankers gave the Company notice that it intended to withdraw  all the  facilities that  it had  made available  to the Company.

“The Directors  sought to  obtain replacement  facilities from  other banks  but were unsuccessful.

“I am  confident regarding  the long  term future of the PipeHawk group  and therefore I agreed to advance further funds to the Company on similar terms to the loans I had previously advanced to the Company on the understanding that  negotiations  would  commence  on  converting  £1  million  of  loans into convertible unsecured loan stock.

“PipeHawk is committed to technologies and products that unite the goals of customer value and sustainable development. After a difficult year my outlookfor the group remains optimistic.”