Cornish manufacturer Composite Integration has acquired a neighbouring specialist business as it continues its growth curve.
The Saltash-based firm has completed the full merger with Silicone Composites to provide a single “point of excellence”. Silicone Composites was established in 2013 with the aim of providing a more efficient, less labour intense closed moulding process whilst also looking to reduce the amount of consumable waste.
In 2016, after strong growth, Silicone Composites became a sister company of Composite Integration, the market leader in resin transfer molding (RTM) and infusion technologies with a full acquisition and merger now having been completed.
Combining the practical knowledge of silicone processing with Composite Integration’s expertise in designing and building world-class resin processing equipment has enabled the two companies to offer a superior range of silicone spray equipment backed up by an unparalleled depth of experience in composite and silicone processing.
During the past four years both businesses have seen significant growth and have continuously evolved to offer market leading technologies underpinned by the knowledge gained from ongoing research and technology on a variety of collaborative and commercial programs.
Composite Integration said it is committed to “providing market-leading, innovative, and well- engineered solutions to the composites industry, specialising in RTM and resin infusion”.
A spokesman said: “With the addition of Silicone Composites, the company is set to become a single point of excellence for all RTM and silicone solutions.”
Founded in 2002 in Composite Integration, has grown from a two-person start-up to a £5million-plus turnover company employing more than 30 people.
It specialises in the design and manufacture of equipment and tooling for composites manufacture and also has a strong research and technology profile and is currently running multiple, multiyear collaborative funded and commercial R&T programs.
The company moved for the fourth time to new, fully refitted, premises in Saltash in August 2019. A year later it announced it was working on a trailblazing new luxury helicopter project described as an “Elon Musk-style” disrupter for the aviation business.
Composite Integration is using extensive experience in closed-mould and infusion process technology to design and manufacture tooling and components for the high-performance composite fuselage of the HX50 helicopter.
The whirlybird is the latest project of Staffordshire’s Hill Helicopters, which describes the five-seat, turbine-powered, 500-horsepower rotorcraft is the world’s “first truly private, luxury helicopter crafted to deliver a whole new experience in safety, performance, adventure, comfort, and elegance”.
The firm said the HX50 is a fusion of “refined performance and artistic elegance”. Its composite structure and rotor system, optimized engine, reimagined avionics, and elevated interior design make the HX50 an “exquisite”, high-tech and high-performance personal aircraft.
