Not-for-profit research and technology organisation, Glass Futures, will launch a virtual insight into the world’s first Global Centre of Excellence for glass in St Helens.
The facility is set to connect the glass industry and academia to deliver exportable R&D and innovation, as well as training and up-skilling opportunities, ensuring glass making’s future is built on sustainable, recyclable, carbon-zero products.
Glass Futures has secured more than 30 million GBP in funding from national, regional and local Government plus 20 million GBP investment committed from industry to support this ground-breaking facility. The company has also secured more than 8 million GBP funding to progress a range of other cutting edge R&D developments for the glass sector, including the exploration of low carbon fuels such as hydrogen and biofuels in glass making, alongside the development of new raw materials and new furnace technologies, all of which will help to further reduce the carbon footprint of glass products to help the industry meet it’s 2050 decarbonisation targets.
Glass Futures will hold a series of open access virtual collaborative and interactive workshops for glass manufacturers, technology suppliers and glass end users to find out more about the proposals, how the centre of excellence will benefit their business, the carbon saving opportunity and how industry, up-skilling and training will be delivered within this safe environment.
The collaborations will be held on:
- Wednesday 27th January 2pm – 3.30pm
Overview, materials, melting and refractories and Q&A - Wednesday 24th February 2pm – 3.30pm
Digitisation, forming and quality and Q&A - Wednesday 31st March 2 – 3.30pm
People, skills and collaboration and Q&A
To find out more or to register for any of the sessions please click here.
Aston Fuller, General Manager of Glass Futures, said, “This Government investment into the Glass Futures Centre of Excellence will transform our industry. No one single manufacturer, no matter how large, can explore the ideal technological solutions the sector needs to evolve, but together we can.
“Glass Futures is a collaborative project and inclusion, input and expertise from the wider industry is vital. We want to work closely with suppliers, manufacturers, contractors and product users to ensure we can best respond to the industry needs, as well as delivering solutions that advance us towards the net zero carbon goal.”