Babcock, Uplift360 to recycle composite parts from Typhoon aircraft

Sam Staincliffe, co-founder and CEO of Uplift360 (left) and Chloe Barker, managing director for Babcock’s UK Aviation business (right). Source | Uplift360, Babcock

FTSE 100 defense company Babcock International Group (Babcock, London, U.K.) has signed a contract with Uplift360 (Luxembourg and Bristol, U.K.), a company that specializes in the recycling of advanced materials. The partnership will explore how composite materials from a Typhoon aircraft can be broken down and repurposed, and how this process could be applied more widely across additional defense platforms. 

“By combining our operational experience with Uplift360’s specialist expertise, we’re working together to support our customers’ sustainability ambitions,” says Chloe Barker, managing director for Babcock’s UK Aviation business. “This partnership is focused on delivering practical solutions that contribute to more efficient use of resources and strengthen the long-term resilience of U.K. defense supply chains. [Moreover] this collaboration is a great example of how we can work side by side with small and medium enterprises to deliver meaningful change.”

Uplift360 is a cleantech company developing circular chemical recycling technologies for high-performance materials such as carbon and aramid fibers. The company uses its room-temperature chemistry to recover mission-grade composites from end-of-life waste — helping defense and manufacturing partners reduce waste, secure supply chains and meet sustainability goals. Uplift360 was established in the U.K. in 2021 with DASA funding and has expanded operations to Luxembourg.