Sales are continuing to grow at Synergy Health, the Swindon-based international medical sterilisation group whose acquisition by a US group is being challenged by regulators.
Synergy, which provides specialist outsourced support services to hospitals and health-related businesses, achieved a 9% increase in revenue to £104.2m in the three months to June 28. 
Underlying revenue, excluding the impact of currency fluctuations, increased by 10.7%. Its operating margin was 60 basis points higher than the comparative period.
As a result, Synergy was trading in line with directors’ expectations for the full year, the firm said in a statement to the London Stock Exchange. In the year to March 29 revenue rose by 7.5% to £408.8m.
Last October Synergy announced it had agreed a takeover by Ohio-based Steris Corporation, which provides infection prevention to clients in the healthcare, pharmaceutical and research industries.
But in May US regulator the Federal Trade Commission said it could be block the move as being anti-competitive.
Synergy and Steris are contesting the commission’s decision, arguing that their combination is “pro-competitive and in the best interest of all constituents of the two companies, including customers”.
The new company, 30% owned by Synergy shareholders with the balance owned by Steris stockholders, is expected to have a combined revenue of about $2.6bn and employ about 14,000 people in 60 countries.
As well as its head office in Swindon, the HQ of Synergy’s Applied Sterilisation Technologies division is on the town’s Elgin Industrial Estate. It also operates an electron beam sterilisation plant and microbiological services laboratory at South Marston.
Synergy acquired Swindon-based sterlisation group Isotron in 2007 and later moved its head office to the town.
