A Borders firm that makes cable systems which sit at the heart of high speed communications networks has bought a German rival under a €30 million (£28m) push for growth in global markets.

Emtelle bought Moore GmBH to help the firm to capitalise on the boom in demand for fibre optic links that is being driven by massive increases in internet usage around the world.

The cables Emtelle supplies are used in all stages of the networks developed by telecommunications firms, stretching from central hubs to individual homes.

The acquisition of Moore will give Emtelle valuable additional capacity in a location that is ideally placed to serve the markets of Central and Eastern Europe.

Emtelle is owned by a Luxembourg-based investment business.

However, chief executive Mads A. Høgfeldt, said: “Our headquarters will remain in Hawick and this acquisition will enable us to expand our facilities and staff there still further and ensure we are well-placed for a future in which there will be increasing demand for our products.”

Chief financial officer Tony Rodgers said the European expansion did not raise questions about the desirability of the firm having headquarters in Scotland.

“It’s the focus of where the business came from; it’s where all the research and development and the clever solutions are and the unique manufacturing,” he noted.

The company is also making a substantial investment in its plants at Hawick and Jedburgh ,which employ around 280 people in total.

Mr Rodgers said the plants form a tech hub for the industry.

He reckons Emtelle’s success owes much to the fact the glass fibre cables it supplies for use in carrying signals are already clad in protective ducting.

This offers efficiencies for firms that are installing networks, which might have to buy cables for inserting into ducting separately otherwise.

The technology was developed in Scotland by Emtelle, which emerged out of the plastic coat hanger business run in Jedburgh by Mainetti.

Noting that Emtelle has had no problems recruiting enough specialists Mr Rodgers said: “Being in the Borders helps us to recruit and retain a loyal and motivated workforce.”

The vote for the UK to leave the European Union had no bearing on the decision to acquire production capacity in Germany.

“That never came into mind,” observed Mr Rodgers, who said there remained great uncertainty about what Brexit would mean in practice.

Emtelle has no plans to shift activity to continental Europe following the Brexit vote.

Around a third of the €30m investment announced yesterday will be spent in Scotland.

Emtelle said the investment will be used to drive innovation, training and capability development in its Scottish facilities.

The latest expansion followed a multi-million pound global investment programme in 2015-16. Some 75 per cent of that funding went to Scotland.

The group employs around 450 people in total, including 30 who have joined from Moore. It has around €200m turnover.

Mainetti moved into developing ducting used in telephone networks in the 1980s. The hanger operation employs around 200 in Jedburgh.

The ducting business was rebranded as Emtelle in 2001. It has no connection with Mainetti now.

Emtelle has diversified over the years to serve industries such as water, power, rail and highways .

However, the communications industry provides the bulk of its business.

It expanded into Scandinavia in 2007 with the acquisition of Dantex of Denmark.

The company bought Indian water specialist Parixit Industries in 2010.

Mr Høgfeldt said there was a natural synergy between the products and skillsets of Emtelle and Moore.

“The addition of manufacturing capability in the centre of the largest country in western Europe is a complementary expansion of our core Scandinavian and UK manufacturing capabilities, “ said Mr Hogfeldt.

He added: “This acquisition will ensure better and more local customer service to our rapidly developing customer base. As a combined group, we will be able to supply the increasing global demands for fibre by adding a full manufacturing facility to our current sales team in Germany.”