Flixborough, United Kingdom - Global paints and coatings manufacturer Jotun, one of the major providers of intumescent fire protection coatings for the infrastructure and energy industries, has announced the completion of major expansion of its Global Intumescent R&D Laboratory to advance new product innovation and technologies.

This ambitious expansion more than doubles the size of the Flixborough Global Intumescent R&D facility, aiming to increase Jotun’s product development and fire testing capacity and capabilities. The new facilities will accelerate the development of new innovations and more advanced products, whilst providing additional certification support to Jotun’s existing product range.

Jotun is determined to gain market share in this industry by accelerating development of new and advanced technologies. Its aim is to enter new markets through wider certification and regional product customisation in line with rapidly changing market requirements. This ensures its customers assets are fire protected to latest regulatory requirements and materials deliver high performance for their specific location.

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Originally constructed in 2016 and now expanded to 2,900m², the enhanced facility increases capacity and capability for Jotun’s ongoing development of intumescent fire protection coatings -  SteelMaster for steel structures within the infrastructure market and Jotachar for vital assets in the energy industries. The one-year expansion program included the installation of new furnaces, with associated application and conditioning facilities, combined with new analytical, environment simulation and mechanical testing facilities.

Supported by Jotun’s R&D headquarters in Sandefjord, Norway, the enhanced global hub in Flixborough will continue to focus on leading edge R&D projects, driving breakthrough intumescent coatings technology.

In addition to the Global Intumescent Laboratory in Flixborough, Jotun has cemented its commitment to localised innovation ensuring differing certification and environmental requirements are met within each market. Strategic investment in regional intumescent research, development and testing facilities span Norway, United Arab Emirates, China, Korea, USA, and Malaysia.

Jotun’s enhanced capabilities across its network of intumescent R&D facilities represents a significant milestone in its drive to advancing fire safety through research and development. Its growing team of dedicated scientists and industry specialists are capable of engaging with fire protection authorities, global regulators and certification bodies providing guidance on testing, certification and material performance.

A testament to this commitment was illustrated earlier this year when Jotun unveiled its latest advance in intumescent coatings, Jotachar JF570 XT - a patent pending all-climate capable intumescent coating, designed to protect oil, gas and energy installations from fire and cryogenic spills, in even the most extreme environments.

James Irving, R&D Manager Intumescent Coatings, said: “When we opened the Global Intumescent R&D Centre in 2016, our vision was for a facility that could evolve to support our customers across the globe as their structural fire protection requirements become more complex and regionalized. We are delighted with this major extension, more than doubling the size of our facility, we are now ready to further enable the development of fire protection coatings and technologies to meet these requirements.”

“Our Intumescent R&D team is expanding rapidly. These new facilities will allow our scientists, technicians, and industry specialists to reinforce our position as a global innovator in this safety-critical area of the coatings industry.”

“This expansion is a key part of Jotun's ambitious strategy to increase market share and grow sales of intumescent coatings by developing a global network of intumescent R&D facilities with Flixborough as the hub.”

For further information

James Irving
R&D Manager Intumescent Coatings
james.irving@jotun.co.uk
(+44) 1724 400071

Andy Groundwater
Head of Media Relations, Fifth Ring
andy.groundwater@fifthring.com
(+44) 1224 628088

About Jotun

Jotun is one of the world’s leading paints and coatings manufacturers, combining the best quality with constant innovation and creativity. For almost a century we have protected all types of property – from iconic buildings to beautiful homes. Jotun operates in four segments: decorative paints, marine coatings, protective coatings, and powder coatings. Each segment offers its own solutions, but they all share our vision of using paints and coatings to protect property. With a presence in more than 100 countries, Jotun operates on every continent. For more information visit www.jotun.com