More than 500 workers over the age of 40 at the NCR plant, Kingsway, have participated in free health screening while at the same time helping an international investigative project funded by charity The Wellcome Trust.

Dundee University’s Professor Andrew Morris and his team are working on the project, which aims to clarify lifestyle and genetic contributions to type 2 diabetes so that treatment can be improved and the risk of complications reduced.

The group are working in hospital clinics, general practices and work places throughout Tayside and asking willing participants to help out.

Half of the study population will be patients who have type 2 diabetes, and half will act as controls in the research and not suffer from the illness.

“This was an excellent opportunity for employees to take part in a health assessment carried out conveniently at their workplace,” said Audrey Burns, occupational health nurse at NCR.

So far, over 5000 people across Tayside have contributed to the project.

Professor Andrew Morris said, “We know there are 15,000 people with diabetes in Tayside, and this figure is increasing by about 10% each year.

“This research will provide a fantastic resource for international scientists and clinicians to define the key factors underlying this very common disease.”