IT MUST be one of the most unusual items of furniture to grace in a business centre.

Part of a V-12 engine from a Second World War Supermarine Spitfire that flew in the has been turned into a glass-top coffee table at the newly-launched Fareham Innovation Centre.

Commissioned by centre operator Oxford Innovation, the £6,000 object has pride of place in the reception area at purpose-built Merlin House.

The £5.3million centre is next door to the former HMS Daedalus airfield at Lee-on-the-Solent, and forms part of the South’s only designated enterprise zone.

Senior centre manager Stephen Brownlie said: “Given the proximity of the former military airport, the focus on technology in the enterprise zone and the name of our centre, we felt it appropriate to celebrate Britain’s aviation expertise with the engine display.

“It symbolises British engineering excellence and is also a poignant reminder of how technology can turn the tide of history.”

This month marks the 75th anniversary of the Battle of Britain, in which Spitfires played a key decisive role. And Fareham Innovation Centre is only 14 miles from the Southampton factory where the famous fighter aircraft were built.

Ursh Stevens, founder of Cumbria-based Refunk’d, obtained the engine from Second World War aviation specialists Spitfires Spares.

She said: “The engine arrived was a pile of scrap. Luckily I have a good welder in my boyfriend, Nick Pinnell. The crankcase I painted pink to resonate with the brand colours of the innovation centre.

“It’s one of the most unusual commissions I’ve ever done and I was conscious of working on a piece of military history.”