Rochdale-based specialist manufacturer to invest in pioneering new technology to save energy, reduce carbon emissions and protect workers

Photo: Google, DigitalGlobe

Inktech on Crawford Street

A Rochdale-based specialist manufacturer is set to benefit from a pioneering new technology to save energy, reduce carbon emissions and protect workers.

Inktech Ltd, of Crawford Street, Rochdale is a specialist manufacturer of printing inks for the food packaging sector and also produces other industrial coatings.

The company has been working with industrial partner R&B Industrial which is developing and retrofitting a fully wireless local exhaust ventilation control system (LEV) for Inkech.

The LEV helps protect workers from dust and solvent fumes and the new technology will achieve energy savings of up to 70%, using sensor technology and innovative energy harvesting.

Inktech managing director Richard Duckworth said: "As part of the Carbon Trust’s IEEA programme and in conjunction with R&B Industrial we are carrying out a digital upgrade to our existing LEV technology which will save up to 70% on system running costs as well as improving performance.

"As an independently run business that is driven by innovation and reducing our carbon emissions, we are delighted to have been able to work with R&B on this project and commit over a short timescale.

"This is pioneering technology will protect workers even more and is a great step towards our sustainability goals. We estimate that we will reduce our carbon emissions by over 10,000 kilograms a year."

The technology is one of seven projects to have secured funding across the UK in a bid to save energy and resources, and will help protect workers from dust and solvent fumes and the new technology will achieve energy savings of up to 70%, using sensor technology and innovative energy harvesting.

These projects are the fourth phase of the Industrial Energy Efficiency Accelerator (IEEA) programme, supported by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, which helps innovators to demonstrate technology for industrial use.  

Phase 4 winners also include two different pioneering metal working techniques, new ventilation systems, methods for cleaning food manufacturing equipment and concrete technology.  

The IEEA is managed by the Carbon Trust, in partnership with Jacobs and Innovate UK KTN. Funding for the accelerator comes from the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero as part of the £1bn Net Zero Innovation Portfolio (NZIP). 

The IEEA contributes between £150,000 and £1 million to each project, typically around 40-60% of project funding, with the remainder being funded by the successful applicant(s). 

It was launched in 2017 and has awarded £11.7m in grant funding throughout Phases 1, 2 and 3, with a further £4.8m awarded in Phase 4. Combined, the IEEA has leveraged £14m from the private sector to support the 31 projects.