Core markets

Our core markets provide a strong base and a diversified portfolio. Within these markets, we aim to maintain our leadership positions and are focusing on market segments that exhibit higher growth potential, such as aerospace and fire protection, and expanding the reach of our core portfolio in key geographies, such as India.

Industrial

There is an increasing need for our customers to improve operational efficiency and to reduce energy consumption and carbon dioxide emissions to make their businesses more sustainable.

We engineer components which are highly resistant to chemical and physical wear, corrosion and extreme temperatures. These components sit at the heart of many industrial processes.

• Our thermal ceramic fibres like Superwool® XTRA support better energy consumption.
• We produce reduced wear, reliable seals which extend pump life by up to 4x, (compared to spray coated stainless steel rings), resulting in the significant reduction of through life costs.
• Our Pyro-Bloc® modules for regenerative thermal oxidisers reduce the number of through-joints between modules, resulting in fewer opportunities for heat loss, and reduced fuel related expenses.

Conventional transportation

Growing populations, increasing urbanisation and the demand for more sustainable and cost-effective transportation options is driving an increase in demand for conventional transportation solutions across the globe. Air travel is increasing with demand from business and leisure customers. There is a growing need for these systems to run more efficiently as well as to withstand greater extremes in temperature.

We make high-performance components and sub-assemblies to exacting standards for aerospace, automotive, marine and rail applications. Customers come to us for their most demanding applications, for example when they need to hold very fine features on small components.

• We enable more efficient jet engines through the production of more complex cores for casting turbine blades.
• We make carbon brushes for trains.
• We make high-temperature fibre products used for emission control in vehicles.
• Our seals and bearings are used in vehicle fuel and thermal management, providing near frictionless running and low wear rates.
• Our fused silica and mullite rollers enable thermal annealing of automotive chassis parts.

Petrochemical & Chemical

In the Petrochemical and Chemical markets our customers demand high performance insulation and fire protection solutions.

We manufacture a range of components ideally suited to the uniquely demanding operating environments.

• Our products and materials are routinely chosen to fulfil critical applications for thermal management and downstream processing, owing to their resistance to chemical wear, corrosion and extreme heat.
• Our self-lubricating seals and bearings and our ceramic shafts reduce the energy consumption of pumps in chemical plants.

Security and Defence

Defence spending is increasing globally, reflecting geopolitical tensions. We see a growing need for materials that can withstand greater strains, pressures and temperatures.

We supply precision-engineered materials, components and assemblies to meet the exacting standards of the global defence and security market. Our advanced ceramic materials offer superior dimensional stability, strength, stiffness and chemical resistance across a wide range of temperatures.

• Our components for night vision systems enable superior performance.
• Our ceramic tiles are used to build high-performance body and vehicle armour.
• Our ceramic cores are used to make high-performance turbine blades for aircraft engines.