Published 12/01/2020

Secured Innovate UK funding expands Bindatex tape slitting capabilities

Funding will ensure 1-millimeter thermoplastic UD slit tape volumes can meet growing demand for aircraft and other key transport applications.

Edited by: Grace Stubbins

Senior Managing Editor, CompositesWorld and Products Finishing

On Nov. 24, Bindatex (Bolton, U.K.) announced that it has been awarded an Innovate UK grant of almost £100,000 from the Sustainable Innovation Fund. The purpose of the grant, says Bindatex, is to support a critical six-month R&D project to further develop and upscale the company’s one-millimeter-wide slitting capability for next-generation composite parts manufacturing.

The funding will support extensive research and testing and development of bespoke technology to enable Bindatex to produce one-millimeter-wide thermoplastic unidirectional (UD) slit tape in volumes that meet the future growth demands of light weight aircraft manufacturers and other key transport applications. According to Bindatex, the Innovate funding will be pivotal in enabling Bindatex to maintain its position at the forefront of technical slitting to support companies who are developing digital composites printing solutions worldwide.

“I cannot stress how beneficial this grant from Innovate UK is to the continued growth of Bindatex. It’s going to allow us to carry out research that would not otherwise be possible at the current time due to the impact of COVID-19,” says Chris Lever, managing director, Bindatex. “The past seven months have not been easy; however, we have continued to invest in key initiatives including our Industry 4.0 data capture system. This investment has helped us to adapt to different markets, while still maintaining the high level of service and fast turnaround times our customers expect. This Innovate UK funding will give us an even greater capability and open up more potential markets to Bindatex, making us a much more resilient U.K. enterprise as a result.”

One of the objectives of the projects is to increase the yields of ultra-narrow slitting and reduce any in-process waste being sent to landfill as this is not currently sustainable at increased volumes. The aim, as manufacturing capability is ramped up, is to identify how this waste can be recycled and reused for other processes.

“There is strong demand right now for digital composite printing to replace small metallic parts on aircraft, cars, rail and possibly medical technology too. The market potential is huge,” adds Lever.

Innovate UK, as part of UK Research and Innovation, is investing up to £191 million to fund single and collaborative research and development projects as part of the Sustainable Innovation Fund over the next two years. The aim of these competitions is to help all sectors of the U.K. rebuild after the effects of COVID-19.

The Sustainable Innovation Fund, specifically, is funding 1,103 projects, 1,189 U.K. businesses and is totaling more than £130 million in support across the U.K..

“In these difficult times we have seen the best of British business innovation. The pandemic is not just a health emergency but one that impacts society and the economy,” says Innovate UK Executive Chair, Dr. Ian Campbell. “Along with every initiative Innovate UK has supported through this fund, with this project, Bindatex’s advanced material cutting is taking an important step forward in driving sustainable economic development. Each project is also helping to realize the ambitions of hard-working people.”