Corus opens new facilities in Wales

Corus opens two new facilities

Corus has officialy opened two new facilities at its Shotton site in North Wales. The first is a £6 million investment in the Corus Panels and Profiles Shotton Panel Line No 1. The new production line, which is claimed to be the most automated and efficient in Europe, can produced 1 million m2 per year of composite panel cladding for the construction sector. The panel line is located next to an upstream Colorcoat production line and so incurs no transport costs for the delivery of its raw material stock, thereby reducing CO2 emissions.

The second project is a joint collaboration between Corus and Australian company Dyesol, a global supplier of dye sensitised systems. DSC (dye sensitised solar cells) is an emerging photovoltaic (PV) technology that mimics photo-synthesis in plants.

Corus, in collaboration with Dyesol, has an ambition to develop, manufacture and market metal roof and wall cladding products with dye sensitised cell photovoltaic functionality to complement its existing business. The £11-million project has been supported by the Welsh Assembly Government.

Rhodri Morgan, First Minister for Wales officially opened the facilities today at the Shotton plant. The First Minister said: These latest investments will diversify the Corus range of high value added finished products ... During difficult times in the construction sector, it is more important than ever for companies to be right at the forefront of new environmental technology exploiting new niche markets. That’s what today’s product launches are all about.”