SP Systems on the Isle of Wight
SP Systems
Island company pioneers revolution in Advanced Composite Materials
During the 1980s there was a revolutionary change in boatbuilding
techniques, as some builders moved from aluminium and conventional glass reinforced
polyester to advanced composites. SP, formed in the late 1970s on the Isle of
Wight, was instrumental in driving this change. SP is now a leading global supplier
of advanced composite solutions and has a particular focus on three application
areas – marine, wind energy and automotive.
SP moved into new purpose-built headquarters in May 1999.
The eight-acre site in Newport now houses much of its manufacturing work, research
and development and operational activities. SP opened an Australian sales office
in the late 1980s and an additional manufacturing plant, based in Albacete,
Spain, was opened in 2001. The acquisition of SP in 2002 by the Swiss group,
Gurit-Heberlein, also means that SP is able to call upon the broad base of composite
technologies offered by sister companies within the composite division, Gurit
Composite Technologies. In July 2003, SP acquired ATC Chemicals, which is now
known as SP (North America). As well as a growing number of global sites, SP
has a strong network of distributors and agents around the world.
 The
increasing number of global sites demonstrates the overall growth that SP has
seen over the past few years. In 1997 the turnover was around £15m, but
by 2002 had reached over £50m, largely attributable to the company’s
involvement in the wind energy industry. SP is also active in helping to promote
and develop the Isle of Wight into a centre of excellence for composites. We
are a major contributor to the composites cluster, which brings together all
companies on the Island, who are involved with composites, to achieve this aim.
SP believes its approach of combining material science, structural
design and process engineering is key to its success. These three disciplines,
combined with a highly dedicated and professional global team, enable the company
to offer customers an all round optimized solution, whether it is a standard
'off the shelf’ material, a complete materials package, onsite technical
support or structural engineering services. It is this approach that SP will
carry into the future as it continues to provide its customers with what they
have come to expect from the company – a commitment to the development
of cost effective, high performance composite materials that will stand the
test of time.
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Document Last Updated: 09/04/2003 15:06:11 - Content Providers: Webteam
