Knauf Insulation: £40m investment welcomed in St Helens

Knauf Insulation, a worldwide glass and mineral wool insulation manufacturer, approved a £40m investment into its St Helens site last week.

The move is planned to boost capacity at its two UK Glass Mineral Wool plants as well as improving the range, availability and sustainability of its products. 

The move is planned to further Knauf and the Council's sustainability targets

To meet their productivity and sustainability targets, the investment will provide the Stafford Road plant with a larger furnace as well as improved fiberising technology and downstream equipment.

The company has also agreed a deal in principle to acquire the adjacent Pilkington Architectural site on Borough Road from NSG Group for further their warehouse and storage space.

With the investment helping St Helens to build on its sustainable manufacturing reputation, it will also support the borough's carbon net-zero targets.

Knauf are described as one of the "fastest growing and most respected names" in the insulation industry

Welcoming the approved investment, Lisa Harris, St Helens Borough Council’s Executive Director for Place Services, said:

“As one of the fastest growing and most respected names in insulation worldwide, we’re proud to have businesses like Knauf Insulation here in St Helens, a place it has called home for many years and who we have struck up a good working relationship with.

"An investment of this scale is a testament to the workforce and I’m sure the employees of Knauf Insulation in St Helens are extremely proud of their contributions.

"Not only is this latest multi-million-pound investment good news from an economic perspective, with inward investment, expected job creation and security, and the repurposing of the vacant Pilkington site which recently closed – but it will make a significant contribution to the borough’s green recovery through carbon reduction, which will help the council achieve its goal of reaching net zero by 2040."