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Sigmatex gets govt funding for vehicle lightweighting

06 Apr '15

2 min read

Sigmatex, the world’s leading independent converter of carbon fibre, has been awarded government funding through the Advanced Manufacturing Supply Chain Initiative (AMSCI) for a project that aims to produce higher volumes of composites in the UK to accelerate vehicle lightweighting.

The Sigmatex Lightweighting Excellence Programme (LX) has been awarded £3.8 million from the latest AMSCI round of funding. The LX consortium will address the lack of capability in the automotive sector to manufacture composite components at high volumes of scale in the UK by connecting the key elements of designing, manufacturing, and creating capacity for production.

The lightweighting programme is a strategic cooperation led by Sigmatex in partnership with Caparo Advanced Composites, Cranfield University, Expert Tooling & Automation, Granta Design, Group Rhodes, LMAT, Surface Generation, Tilsatec and with support from Axillium Research and Axillium Lightfellows. Three UK based automotive OEMs will work closely with the LX manufacturing and technical partners.

A total project value of £7.15 million of joint funding from AMSCI and industry will support the creation of 238 new jobs and safeguard 144 existing jobs between 2015 and 2021, Sigmatex reported in a statement.

The LX Consortium has been developed in line with the industrial strategy of BIS and it is aligned with the Automotive Council’s lightweight technology strategy. LX partners will work to understand the challenges for vehicle OEMs in the areas of lightweight design, manufacturing and production growth to meet a high volume UK capability.

Sigmatex’s CEO, Scott Tolson, said “This innovative project aims to develop ways to reduce the cost and upscale the incorporation of composites in cars, so that such materials can be used in a wider range of vehicles.”

Sigmatex develops and manufactures carbon fibre textiles for composite material applications. From global locations, Sigmatex supplies carbon fibre textiles across a broad spread of industries ranging from the world’s top supercar manufacturers to aerospace companies.

AMSCI is a funding competition designed to improve the global competitiveness of UK advanced manufacturing supply chains. Funding is available to support research and development, skills training and capital investment to help UK supply chains achieve world-class standards and encourage major new suppliers to locate in the UK. (GK)

Fibre2fashion News Desk - India