Kennametal Inc — the North American technology company that manufactures specialty metallurgical powders and compounds, as well as products made from tungsten carbide and other hard materials — has become the latest member of the Manufacturing Technology Centre in Coventry.
The company also has UK operations in Kingswinford in the Black Country and Newport in Gwent.
MTC chief executive Clive Hickman said: “Kennametal has been an industry leader for more than 75 years, providing custom-engineered solutions for the aerospace, energy, earthworks, transportation and industrial sectors world-wide. We look forward to working with its engineering expertise here at the MTC.”
Colin Tilzey, director of the company’s innovation ventures group, said: “Kennametal aims to achieve more than 40% of its sales each year from new products, and we value partnerships such as this one that help to romote innovative process development and leadership.
"In addition, developing the workforce of tomorrow is a priority for Kennametal; our partnership with MTC enables us to further influence opportunities to fill the skills gap.” Founded by TWI Ltd and the universities of Birmingham, Loughborough and Nottingham, the MTC opened in 2011.
It aims to provide a competitive environment to bridge the gap between university-based research and the development of innovative manufacturing solutions.