Versarien plc (LON:VRS), the advanced materials engineering group, has today announced that it has signed a collaboration with a prominent global sports and fashion goods manufacturer.
The collaboration will see both parties working on a number of projects involving the incorporation of Versarien’s proprietary Nanene few layer graphene nano-platelets into polymer, leather, elastomer and textile structures. In particular, the collaboration will aim to provide improved footwear and textile solutions aimed at the amateur and professional football sector, where the Company’s partner has a global presence, with sponsorship of British, European and international top flight professional football clubs.
Versarien and this collaboration partner, which has multiple manufacturing plants globally, will examine a number of formulations comprising existing materials with graphene loading to assess the feasibility of these nanocomposites to provide improvements in footwear and textile applications. The key potential benefits of the use of graphene in these products is the increased performance of moisture barriers, increased material strength, weight reduction and improved thermal conductivity.
Neill Ricketts, CEO of Versarien plc, commented: “We are very pleased to have entered into this latest graphene application collaboration agreement, the fourteenth such agreement since October last year. In entering into these collaborations we are looking to engage with a wide variety of sectors where the incorporation of graphene into existing materials can have a significant benefit.
“The sports goods sector is fast moving and very open to the rapid adoption of new technologies. It is therefore a sector of significant focus for Versarien to enable a near term route to market for our high quality graphene. In entering into this collaboration with a globally renowned name in the football kit sector we are again ensuring we are developing a partnership with a leading company in its field.
“I look forward to providing further updates on our existing collaborations and announcing others that are currently in discussion.”
