Transforming a rich heritage for a greener future
FEATURE
Bird ’ s eye view – the Wilton International site from above .
Wilton International
Transforming a rich heritage for a greener future
Wilton International is a 2,000-acre industrial park in the heart of Teesside , a region with a rich industrial heritage as well as an exciting and innovative future in forging the technologies of tomorrow .
Wilton has been a prominent part of the Teesside skyline for more than 75 years , though not everyone is familiar with its journey .
The history of the site began in 1926 when Brunner Mond and Britain ’ s other major chemical manufacturers merged to form Imperial Chemical Industries – better known to us all as ICI . This new business superpower bought the land where Wilton now sits in late 1945 and the site was officially opened four years later .
Wilton was originally designed to meet the huge post-war demand for plastics , fibres and other man-made materials . Though we tend to associate our region ’ s history more with steel and heavy manufacturing , in 1952 ICI opened a large Terylene plant . An alternative to wool and cotton fabric , Terylene was the first wholly synthetic fibre to be invented in the UK and large quantities were produced at ICI in Wilton , which really put the site on the map .
Today , Wilton is largely owned by Sembcorp , a leading international energy and urban solutions provider . Sembcorp is led by its purpose to drive energy transition – with a global head office in Singapore – and it supplies on-site customers with development land , energy and utilities .
After acquiring the site in 2003 , Sembcorp was swiftly able to make significant , ground-breaking investments at Wilton , including the first gas turbine on the site and the largest standalone biomass plant in the UK . These were then followed by the development of an energy-from-waste plant .
Sembcorp ’ s ambition is to transform Wilton , leveraging its decarbonisation solutions and attracting like-minded industries to drive the UK ’ s low-carbon goals . Sembcorp recognises the opportunities in the wider region , too , that complement those at Wilton with its capability to provide energy and utilities to current and future customers .
Large-scale production High-quality products made at Wilton are of national and international importance and generate millions of pounds of export revenues for the UK economy each year . Companies on site supply a broad range of products and materials , from traditional petrochemicals through to recycled plastics and biofuels .
So , who is here and what do they do ? Here we ’ ve shared some insights about just four of the companies based at Wilton :
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