Best known for making coins and medals, The Royal Mint's expertise also includes a range of overt and covert anti-counterfeiting technologies that are utilised in many of their products. For the first time, innovations such as The Royal Mint's "High Security Feature" will be available for other organisations to benefit from.

Commenting on this latest collaboration, Hetti Barkworth-Nanton, Ploughshare's CEO said:

"I am really pleased to see the expert technology transfer services we provide being utilised by other parts of Government. This will allow even more of the Government's investment in research and development to be adopted by industry and in turn give them a competitive advantage and help the UK economy."

The High Security Feature is an industry-leading next generation solution for covert security. The previous strongest covert security check was the Electro-Magnetic Signature, however, as the coin wears over time it can lead to inconsistencies in it being recognised by various equipment. This new technology offers banknote-level security in a coin, or other metals, for the first time.

Available either as a service from The Royal Mint or by licensing the technology, the High Security Feature delivers an anti-counterfeiting system for metal components and structures that provides absolute assurance where it matters most.

Sean Millard, Chief Growth Officer at The Royal Mint remarked:

"The Royal Mint has been a leader in the management of precious metals for hundreds of years – innovating through design, manufacturing and customer experience. Developing advanced security measures that provide customers with peace of mind is a key focus for The Royal Mint. By working with Ploughshare Innovations we will be able to bring the benefits of our innovative features to the broader business community."

Gerry Scott, Commercialisation Manager at Ploughshare Innovations, said: "Secure and quick verification of metal parts' authenticity can be an issue for the aerospace industry. Parts can change ownership many times in a typical supply chain, so there is a need for a robust and secure system that can prevent the introduction of fake or otherwise illegal components.

"This system can detect counterfeit and fake parts entering the supply chain and in turn ensures that reputation is maintained, the cost of remedying faults during manufacture is reduced, and that lives are not put in danger due to faulty parts."

This collaboration further increases Ploughshare's pool of Intellectual Property which already includes the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl), the Ministry of Defence Front-Line Commands, the Institute of Naval Medicine, and the Atomic Weapons Establishment (AWE).