A state-of-the-art facility which is set to drive global developments in structural ceramic materials and technology has been officially opened by Morgan Advanced Materials.

Morgan's second Global Materials Centre of Excellence, located at the company's manufacturing facility in Stourport-on-Severn, Worcestershire, was opened by Morgan's Chief Executive Officer, Pete Raby,

Employing a dedicated team of materials specialists and design engineers, the multi-million pound facility will be responsible for the development of new materials technologies for applications in sectors as diverse as aerospace, medical and the environment.

Morgan's Chief Technology Officer, Mike Murray, explained: “Morgan's first Centre of Excellence was opened at our Thermal Ceramics facility in Bromborough in 2008 and has established itself as a leader in the development of high-temperature fibres, which are delivering performance improvements for customers worldwide.

“We envisage that the Stourport Centre of Excellence will set the benchmark for innovation in structural ceramics, bringing together idea generation and realisation in a single dedicated facility.”

Pete Raby added: “The Centre will help us to create critical mass in materials and process development.

“The team will drive forward innovation in processes and material formulations, as well as engaging in collaboration with academic facilities worldwide. This will accelerate our product development and help us to meet the needs of customer for new technologies more quickly.”

Stourport was chosen as the location for the facility from a shortlist of six manufacturing locations across the globe.

With operations in more than 50 countries, Morgan draws on extensive materials capability to deliver highly engineered solutions to markets from medical, aerospace, and power generation to body armour, trains and fire protection systems.