ASHFORD-based Orbital Marketing Services Group has continued its ambitious expansion programme by acquiring Pharmaceutical Marketing Direct (PMD), a specialist healthcare direct mail company based in Hampshire.

PMD provides a range of specialist marketing services to clients who want to communicate with healthcare professionals at hospitals, doctor's surgeries and health centres. PMD's clients include leading players in pharmaceuticals.

PMD employs 25 staff at its Waterlooville headquarters, and is a major force in this sector thanks to its highly-accurate database of doctors, hospitals and surgeries. The list is constantly researched and updated and provides the basis for the company's mailing activity.

PMD was established six years ago by directors Liz Conway and Wendy Cartwright and following the acquisition both will continue to run the company.

Orbital Marketing Services Group -- better known in direct marketing circles for its Aspect, BP Travel and JEM marketing services operations -- is based in Ashford and also has sites at Folkestone, Kent, Abingdon, Oxon and Rushden, Northants. Last month it announced it was investing £300,000 in its nationwide tourism literature distribution business, Take One Media.

The Group now employs more than 500 staff and has specialist direct marketing teams in travel and tourism, education, library and bookselling and now healthcare. It also undertakes general direct mailing and response handling work.

Paul Markland, group managing director, said: 'I'm delighted to be able to welcome PMD into the Orbital fold. PMD and its clients will now benefit from having access to group facilities such as high volume mailing at Folkestone, data processing, fax/email broadcasting and Call Centre services at Ashford, and warehouse and fulfilment services at Rushden.'

PMD's Liz Conway said: 'This is great news for us. Our Waterlooville site is working at full capacity during our peak periods and now that we have access to Orbital's mailing, fulfilment and support resources we will be able to meet the growing demand for our services.'