James Cropper is a world-class advanced materials and paper products group, with an operational reach in over 50 countries. Using materials from cotton and wood to carbon fibre we support industries from packaging to digital imaging and aerospace with products that are at the cutting edge of performance. The business is renowned globally for its dedicated responses to custom projects and its award-winning commitment to the highest standards of sustainability. As a sustainability driven organisation, we recognise the challenge that climate change poses and the responsibility that energy intensive businesses such as ourselves have in tackling the issue. The UK has committed to become net zero by 2050 and many businesses are taking the lead in their commitments. At James Cropper, we want to be a trailblazer in not only sustainable materials but sustainable manufacturing as a whole. We are working with Innovate UK to understand the latest opportunities to deliver significant carbon savings to our manufacturing processes by understanding how renewable energy supplies can be employed effectively and efficiently to our processes. We will do this by understanding key technology that will reduce the reliance of natural gas to run our processes. Recent advances in commercial heat recovery technology will be the main driver. This will position us to step towards a cleaner, greener future.

James Cropper plc is a world-class advanced materials and paper products group, with an operational reach in over 50 countries. Using materials from cotton and wood to carbon fibre we support industries from packaging to digital imaging and aerospace with products that are at the cutting edge of performance. At James Cropper plc we would like to work on a unique innovation project that studies the use of alternative natural fibres (sourced from a UK post consumer waste stream) for the papermaking process. We recognise that the UK is the fourth largest producer of textile waste in Europe with only 10% currently being recycled - More than 200,000 tonnes of UK textile waste is sent to landfill or burnt every year. The project will study the use of UK post consumer textile waste used as a raw material in papermaking and moulded pulp process. The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed vulnerabilities in our current global supply chain and this project will reduce the risk of future supply chain interruptions through the identification of a viable, UK based alternative fibre to our current, globally sourced virgin wood pulp.