Cabot Corporation celebrates 25 years of fumed silica facility
Cabot’s fumed metal oxides manufacturing facility in Barry, Wales, United Kingdom has celebrated its 25th anniversary.
Members of the Performance Chemicals regional leadership team as well as several customers and distribution partners attended the anniversary celebration on June, 15. “It is a great honour to be celebrating 25 years of fumed silica production at the Barry site with our customers, distributors, employees and neighbors,” said Stephen Knight, facility general manager of the Barry site.
Meeting the growing demand
In the early 1990’s, Cabot opened its fumed metal oxides manufacturing facility in Barry to meet the growing demand for silica in the UK and Europe, Middle East and Africa region. The hydrophilic fumed silica plant was officially commissioned in 1992. Over the years, the facility has undergone several strategic expansions, including:
- 1995 – 1996: Doubled the manufacturing capacity of hydrophilic fumed silica.
- 1998 – 2008: Threefold capacity increase of treated silica manufacturing.
- 2014: The addition of densed treated silica capabilities to address emerging market needs.
Leading manufacturing center
The Barry facility has become a leading manufacturing center for Cabot’s fumed silica technology, occupying approximately 24 acres of land at Sully, Vale of Glamorgan, South Wales and producing a range of hydrophilic and hydrophobic fumed silica in both densed and undensed forms.
