The Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (DSTL) and Kennametal Manufacturing UK Ltd, have partnered to develop full size ceramic armour components for personnel and vehicle protection. The ?2 million joint project investment in the Newport, South Wales facility, will establish this centre as the largest in Europe and will help to sustain 50 local jobs. The addition of specialised manufacturing facilities such as this means that ideas generated in the development centre can be produced on site in Newport. DSTL is already working with Tata Steel in Port Talbot to develop advanced steel armour and the Newport development will help establish South Wales as the UK's centre of advanced military armour technology.

As part of the opening ceremony and ribbon cutting event on October 17, Kennametal inaugurated its new state-of-the-art 250 tonne Hybrid Spark Plasma Sintering furnace, advancing its Newport facility capabilities in materials science, research development and sustainable growth.

Kennametal's partnership with the UK Ministry of Defence (MOD) is a strategic partnership that allows the company to partner with government and strengthen the communities where Kennametal facilities are located by leveraging research and development funds to help sustain the economy.

"This is an exciting opportunity for Kennametal Manufacturing UK Ltd to work with MOD and DSTL and also expand its portfolio into the field of high performance ceramic armour products," said Mike Williams, Kennametal's Newport plant manager.

Bernhard Liebl, Director Manufacturing Infrastructure EMEA, added "This State of the Art unit has an investment value of almost ?2 million and we are very proud at Kennametal about this partnership and the ability to develop new materials. These new materials combined with their future application will be a great contribution to Safety, which is also very well aligned with our highest priority at Kennametal to be 100% safe."

"This joint investment is the culmination of four years' work. The ability to make ceramic samples large enough for full scale impact tests while significantly reducing the time it takes to produce a sample allows us to investigate a much wider range of innovative formulations faster and more cheaply than before," said Professor Pete Brown of Dstl.

The DSTL maximises the impact of science and technology (S&T) for the defence and security of the UK, supplying sensitive and specialist S&T services for the Ministry of Defence (MOD) and wider government. DSTL is a trading fund of the MOD, run along commercial lines. It is one of the principal government organisations dedicated to S&T in the defence and security field, with three main sites at Porton Down, near Salisbury, Portsdown West, near Portsmouth, and Fort Halstead, near Sevenoaks.