DSF News

[02/07/25] Employees had the opportunity to view a 3D simulation of our new LAEIS refractory brick press

It was virtual reality day at DSF today, where all our employees had the opportunity to view a 3D simulation of our new LAEIS refractory brick press.

The civil engineering element of this project is now complete and we are looking forward to delivery of the press parts at the end of August for installation in September.

Thanks to Siemens Jeremy Chang and Aravinda Barar for hosting the VR day, it was great to see everyone get a peek of what the finished installation will look like.

[30/06/25] DSF’s Guyanan RASC Bauxite has many uses and was recently spotted on the Wainwright’s Coast-to-Coast path by DSF’s Minerals Director, Chris Whelpton.

DSF’s Guyanan RASC Bauxite has many uses and was recently spotted on the Wainwright’s Coast-to-Coast path by DSF’s Minerals Director, Chris Whelpton.

The Coast-to-Coast walk begins on the cliff tops of St Bees, overlooking the Irish Sea on the west coast of the UK. The path then meanders across the fells and dales of the Lake District, and over the North Yorkshire Moors, before concluding, 190 miles later, at the quaint village of Robin Hoods Bay on the east coast.

As part of improvements to the footpath from Kirkby Stephen to Nine Standards Rigg, a new footbridge has been installed. On each of the decking boards there are two strips of Guyanan RASC Bauxite that have been installed to eliminate slip hazards when crossing the bridge in wet conditions.

[22/06/25] SANDS DSF's 2025/26 charity.

DSF is proud to have chosen Sands, Stillbirth and Neonatal Death Society, as it’s 2025/26 charity.

SANDS offers support to anyone affected by pregnancy loss and aims to support bereaved families and save babies lives. This is an issue that has sadly impacted multiple people at DSF.

More information about this very worthwhile charity can be found at

www.sands.org.uk/

www.facebook.com/sandscharity

[22/05/25] Site investment at DSF.

Work is well under way here at DSF on the installation of a new 1600T Hydraulic Automatic Press supplied by Laeis. Building work is complete and sitework has started with foundations laid and steel work going in. Siemens are managing the project, with commissioning of the new press planned for the start of November.

This major investment will reduce manual handling, increase refractory brick production and open up new business opportunities.

[04/05/25] Biofuel trial successfully completed at DSF.

As part of our sustainability strategy, DSF are evaluating alternative fuels for firing refractory materials at our site in Derbyshire, UK. A £6 million alternative fuel project led by Glass Futures has brought together DSF with major glassmakers, Ardagh, Encirc, O-I and NSG, to assess the viability of utilising alternative renewable liquid fuels. Supported by the UK Government, the project aims to prove scalable solutions that could benefit the entire glass and ceramics industries.

DSF currently uses natural gas (NG) and industrial heating oil (IHO) to provide energy for our various kilns and driers. Biofuel in this trial was assessed as a potential alternative to IHO. The trial aimed to evaluate the efficiency, environmental impact and operational feasibility of using biofuel oil (BFO) compared to our traditional fuel.

The trial results indicated that BFO offers several advantages over IHO in terms of efficiency and emissions. BFO demonstrated a lower fuel usage rate, indicating higher energy efficiency. Additionally BFO produced significantly lower emissions with reductions in CO2, NOx and SOx levels. BFO mimicked our current fuel and firing temperature gradient rates, but we were not able to use the fuel below 1000 degrees C.

This trial, the first of its kind in the UK by a refractory producer, has shown that BFO is a promising alternative to IHO and could be part of the portfolio of strategies used in DSF's commitment to achieving net zero by 2050.

[01/02/25] DSF Visit to Parliament

DSF’s Managing Director, Paul Hutchinson, was invited to a parliamentary dinner at the House of Commons last week, organised by Ceramics UK. It was an opportunity for members of Ceramics UK to speak with Sarah Jones, Minister of State for Industry, and other MPs attending, about the many issues manufacturers in energy intensive industries face in the UK. Topics including high energy costs, the costs of decarbonisation, tax increases, tariffs and CBAM were covered.

The event was hosted by Mr Gareth Snell MP, who kindly gave members a very informative tour of the House of Commons. Thank you to the team at Ceramics UK, including Rachel Timmins and Robert Flello, for organising the event and all the MPs who attended and listened to our concerns.

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