Lucideon has unveiled plans for a more than £500 million ceramic matrix composite (CMC) manufacturing facility in North Staffordshire.
A site at Keele University Science Park has been earmarked for the development, which Lucideon said will help to make the UK a leader in high-growth advanced material technologies.
The facility would supply components for industrial applications, addressing what the company describes as a lack of UK manufacturing capability.
The project is expected to cost more than £500 million over the next seven to 10 years, with the government being asked to contribute just over £200 million.
Two new companies – Oxide Ceramic Systems and Non-Oxide Ceramic Systems – have been incorporated to take the scheme forward.
Stone-based technology company Lucideon set out the cutting-edge techniques and processes it is developing for the manufacturing of CMCs at the Farnborough International Airshow last month.
Chief executive Tony Kinsella said: “The Farnborough International Airshow highlighted the importance of CMC materials and the products manufactured from them.
“They are absolutely vital to our manufacturing capability, our security, and our future, but the UK currently faces a market failure that has left sectors including aerospace, space, and nuclear energy without a sovereign manufacturing capability to enable their delivery.
“This creates exposure to unsustainable supply chain vulnerabilities, increasing the risks to both UK energy security and broader security capabilities.
“By establishing a UK-based Ceramic Matrix Composite manufacturing facility, national security and resilience will be strengthened, international supply chain dependency reduced, and high-value job creation and industrial competitiveness in the Midlands region boosted.
“It’s an ambitious plan, which builds on the history and expertise of ceramics in Staffordshire.
“There’s a long journey ahead, but the important point is that the journey has now started to make the UK a leader in high-growth advanced material technologies.”
CMCs are emerging as a sought-after material globally, combining ceramic fibres and a ceramic matrix to deliver lightweight, high-performance components capable of withstanding extreme temperatures and thermal and mechanical shock.
Lucideon will lead on the scheme under a joint venture with industry partners, alongside key research and development partners, with The AMRICC Centre, in Stone, central to the plans.
Rob Flello, chief executive of Ceramics UK, said: “This advanced manufacturing centre represents a major investment in the future of the UK ceramics industry.
“By enhancing the outstanding work already taking place across the wider ceramics sector, it will strengthen innovation, help drive growth in high-value manufacturing, and reinforce the UK’s industrial resilience.
“It will further cement Staffordshire’s reputation as the UK’s leading centre for ceramics excellence.”
