Xaar has recorded a 13% rise in turnover during 2007 driven by a rise in sales of its single-pass inkjet module and two major contract announcements.

In the results announced this morning, the company also reported a 35% increase in profit before tax to £9.3m and announced a dividend of 2.5p.

The strong performance was due in part to progress in the commercialisation of the new platform 3 printhead products, including the Xaar 1001, and a significant number of developer kits sold to potential OEMs.

Xaar chief executive Ian Dinwoodie said that the agreements with Nilpeter and EFI were the key commercial developments behind the 2007 results and that continued uptake would drive the 2008 figures.

He said: "The top priority for 2008 is to accelerate the generation of commercial returns from our new products which we have seeded into the market over the last year."

The agreement with Nilpeter saw the FFEI Caslon single-pass inkjet module using Xaar heads fitted on a Nilpeter press achieving running speeds of up to 25m per minute.

In addition, Xaar agreed to supply its 1001 piezoelectric printheads for EFI's Jetrion 4000 Series of UV label printers.

The Jetrion 4000 range is designed for labels, tags, forms and tickets and is available in web widths of 139mm or 210mm. Eight Xaar 1001 printheads will feature in the 139mm model, with 12 in the 210mm version.

The Xaar 1001 uses advanced piezo drop-on-demand technology with Xaar patented TF Technology which Xaar claims provides an exceptional leap in quality, reliability and flexibility for a wide range of printing and industrial applications.

Dinwoodie said: "The platform 3 Xaar 1001 printheads enable fast full colour single pass inkjet printing and represent the future of inkjet."