The new Saint-Gobain Innovation Centre has been officially opened by French Ambassador to the United Kingdom His Excellency Mr Bernard Emié, Pierre-André de Chalendar, CEO of Saint-Gobain Group and Peter Hindle MBE, General Delegate Saint-Gobain UK, Ireland and South Africa.
Located at 95 Great Portland Street, London, the Saint-Gobain Innovation Centre showcases the latest solutions for a more sustainable built environment from the company’s UKbusinesses, including Saint-Gobain Weber.
Innovations on display include the award winning weber.therm XP external wall insulation system which uses weber.therm M1 mesh-reinforced, one-coat, through-coloured render. This high performance system is BBA accredited, provides dramatically improved levels of thermal performance and requires little maintenance. The high performance monocouche render weber.pral M, which carries the A+ Green Guide Rating as defined in the BRE Global 2008 Green Guide to Specification, that incorporates One-Coat Technology is also showcased.
Saint-Gobain Weber’s innovative tile adhesives and grouts were applied throughout the building including weber.floor flex and weber.set rapid SPF with Low Dust Technology™ and the water-repellent, flexible tile grout weber.joint pro with Mould Stop Technology.
The Centre also features products and systems from Artex, British Gypsum, Ecophon, Saint-Gobain Glass, Glassolutions, Saint-Gobain Isover, Saint-Gobain PAM, Pasquill and Sage, highlighting the breadth and depth of materials offered and distributed by Saint-Gobain.
As well as demonstrating how products and systems work in practice, the venue is designed to inspire visitors to consider new solutions that correspond with the market needs of today and tomorrow, bringing together influential industry thought leaders to help drive evolution and innovation.
Facilities at the Centre include a product and materials ‘library’, collaborative work spaces and two meeting rooms. Offering open plan or private space, the meeting rooms are available for meetings, conferences, launches and receptions and can be booked by contacting the Saint-Gobain Innovation Centre directly.
Saint-Gobain has a long history of innovation. It was founded in 1665 to deliver a world first: the production of glass on an industrial scale for the Hall of Mirrors at Versailles. Today it operates in 64 countries worldwide and is at the forefront of sustainable development, investing over £416-million globally in R&D and applying for more than 400 patents in the last financial year.
Speaking at the launch, Pierre-André de Chalendar said: “With this new Innovation Centre, Saint-Gobain opens up to professionals with a global vision of our market to help develop and stimulate research. This Innovation Centre reflects our ambition: to become the reference for sustainable habitat, bringing innovative solutions to meet the main challenges of our time.”
