Extending UK manufacturing capacity through the introduction of continuous processing unit operations

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A collaborative R&D project to design, build and trial a modular unit for the continuous production of a range of marketleading anionic surfactants, currently manufactured in the UK by Croda Europe Ltd. Based on patented ContinuousOscillating Baffle Reactor (COBR) technology, the project will deliver a new process for the manufacture of existingproducts, with significant improvements in operational and capital costs and process sustainability without impactingproduct quality. Processes are specifically designed for integration with existing batch manufacturing assets to provideincreased capacity without the need for new supporting infrastructure and extended footprint.The consortium believes that the 30% targeted reduction in operational costs, combined with reduced capital requirementswill make investment in UK manufacturing a competitive option in a global market. This industry led, four partnerconsortium (Croda, CPI, University of Cambridge, Institute for Manufacturing and NiTech) will establish technical andcommercial viability of the concept; de-risking Croda future commercial investment in the proposed technology. Theimpact of this strategy to create flexible manufacturing capacity on existing business models will be explored.