The Gateshead-based company has made what is described as a “significant investment” in Radisoft to ensure the sensor receives the necessary funding to take it to market.

The sensor, which is 'highly effective and simple to use', is said to have the potential to generate millions of pounds in worldwide sales.

Scott Davidson, director of Glasgow-based Radisoft, said it can detect changes in water-borne chemical compounds in a closed system – allowing a gas engineer to predict the failure of individual components, the boiler’s efficiency level and its lifespan.

He is carrying out further work to see how the sensor can be adapted and customised for other uses.

A qualified gas engineer, Scott has spent the last five years developing the sensor after being inspired by his constant call outs to fix faulty boilers, often in the homes of the elderly and vulnerable, who rely on their heating.

He said: “I just had a light bulb moment and thought there must be a simple way of detecting when a boiler is becoming inefficient or a part is about to fail. I undertook some research and realised there wasn’t anything else like it on the market.”

He developed it with the help of a £5,000 grant from Scottish Enterprise and was also supported by the engineering department of Glasgow University. Last year he spent £10,000 patenting the product.

Realising he had insufficient funding to take the sensor to the next stage and create a viable product, Scott approached CMS which immediately saw its value and instead offered to buy a controlling stake in Radisoft.

CMS, which installs, maintains, and repairs business critical systems across the UK, including heating, hot water and electricals, hopes the sensor will be launched next year.

Managing director Nic Smith said: “This is a ground-breaking invention which is truly visionary, given that it is able to easily identify failing parts within a closed system – saving time, money and, more importantly, ensuring unexpected boiler breakdowns are a thing of the past.

“This has immense potential for the global domestic and commercial heating industry and everyone at CMS is hugely excited to play a part in bringing this cutting-edge product to market.”