Leading south Wales-based water management solutions provider, Asset International Ltd, has commissioned a new production line at its factory in Newport.

 

The £2 million investment in the state-of-the-art production line and fabrication bay will enable Asset to produce a 3.5m diameter plastic pipe, the first of this size ever to be produced.

 

The new pipe, which is the world's largest high-density polyethelyne pipe, provides large-scale solutions for customers looking for easy to install and improved alternatives to traditional materials.

 

Asset, which is part of UK-based infrastructure, building and construction products group Hill & Smith Holdings Plc, is now in its 12th year of trading, and with a turnover of more than £10 million, is experiencing increasing demand for its high-density polyethelyne (HDPE) pipe systems known as Weholite.

 

Simon Thomas, managing director at Asset, said: "The new facilities will allow us to double our capacity and provide our customers with an increasingly wider range of solutions.

 

"We've already secured several forward orders for the new size pipe and are experiencing a great deal of interest from potential customers who would usually use more traditional materials but are now realising the benefits of Weholite.

 

"The new 3.5m diameter pipe will offer further opportunities for the use of Weholite including in pre-fabricated SUDS solutions in-line with the Government's future water strategy for flood alleviation in England and Wales.

 

The new facilities at Asset will create a number of new job opportunities at the plant over the next two years. The skilled manufacturing jobs will include plastic fabricators and extrusion line operators.