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Hexcel Composites Ltd • Duxford, Cambridge CB22 4QD, United Kingdom • Telephone +44 (0)1223 833141

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Leading composite materials manufacturer, Hexcel, has today joined the UK's National Composites Centre (NCC), joining a network of members that includes Hexcel customers Vestas, Airbus, GKN Aerospace, Rolls-Royce and Agusta Westland. Being part of the NCC will bring a number of benefits to Hexcel including the opportunity to develop new processes and technologies in conjunction with end users and university specialists - and providing access to state-of-the-art equipment, specialist software, knowledge and experience.

Peter Chivers, Chief Executive of the NCC said: "This is great news for the National Composites Centre. Hexcel is a leading innovator in composite materials, particularly in the fields of aerospace, wind energy and industrial markets. We are very pleased to welcome them to the growing number of NCC members. We look forward to Hexcel's contribution to our multi-sector offering for the whole of the composites industry."

Neil Howard, Hexcel's Director of Sales for Aerospace said: "We are delighted to be joining composites industry leaders as a member of the NCC and look forward to developing even closer working relationships with OEM's to develop and introduce new technologies and applications for composites."

At Hexcel's UK base in Duxford, Cambridge, pioneering work in the development of adhesives and composite materials has been constant since the site was established by Cambridge University Don Dr De Bruyne in 1934. Duxford is Hexcel's Centre of Excellence for Composites Research and Technology, as well as being an important manufacturing site for adhesives, honeycombs, resin film and prepregs.

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Hexcel Media Contact:
Rachel Owen
Tel: +44 1223 838370
Rachel.Owen@hexcel.com

Contact for NCC:
Mary Page
Tel: +44 7530 366 482

About Hexcel
Hexcel Corporation is a leading advanced composites company. It develops, manufactures and markets lightweight, high-performance structural materials, including carbon fibers, reinforcements for composites, prepregs, honeycomb, matrix systems, adhesives and composite structures, used in commercial aerospace, space and defense and industrial applications.

About the NCC
The NCC is located on Bristol & Bath Science Park and is owned and operated by the University of Bristol, and draws on established links to world class composites research at Bristol, the University of Bath and other UK Universities.

The NCC is part of the first Technology and Innovation Centre, "Catapult centre", - for High Value Manufacturing. The HVM Technology and Innovations Centre will provide an integrated capability and embrace all forms of manufacture using metals and composites, in addition to process manufacturing technologies and bio-processing.

It will draw on excellent university research to accelerate the commercialisation of new and emerging manufacturing technologies. This was the first of an elite network of Technology and Innovation Centres that are being established by the Technology Strategy Board with over £200m of Government investment overall.

The NCC's mission is 'To be an independent, open-access national centre that delivers world-class innovation in the design and rapid manufacture of composites and facilitates their widespread industrial exploitation.'

In November 2009 the Government launched the UK Composites Strategy. This highlighted the importance of composites to the future of UK manufacturing and the Government's plans for ensuring that the UK has the means to succeed in intensely competitive global markets.

A key part of this strategy was the establishment of the National Composites Centre (NCC), which brings together dynamic companies and enterprising academics to develop new technologies for the design and rapid manufacture of high-quality composite products. The combination of academic and business strengths will speed progress from laboratory to design to factory and into products.

The NCC is a £25m investment supported by: the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (£12m); the South West RDA (Regional Development Agency) (£4m); and £9m from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). It is owned and hosted by the University of Bristol.

04 April 2012