Technical Fibre Products

What Technical Fibre Products does

Technical Fibre Products (TFP) manufactures advanced wet-laid nonwoven materials and electrochemical coatings for industrial applications. Operating as the Advanced Materials division of James Cropper PLC (LSE: CRP), the Kendal, UK-based company produces a portfolio of proprietary material platforms: VECTIS™ (industrial-scale aligned fibre technology), Resillion™ (PEM electrolyser coatings), SurfaceTec™ (surfacing veils, including the world's lightest 2 g/m² carbon veil), EMITec™ (conductive nonwovens for EMI shielding), Optiveil® (carrier veils down to 2 g/m²), and UNIMAT™ (aligned nonwovens). Energy products include electrolyser coatings, IrO2/IrRuO2 and Pt/C catalysts, cell separators, coated electrodes, GDL substrates, and bipolar plate coatings for fuel cells and PEM electrolysers.

TFP serves a diversified customer base spanning aerospace, automotive, defence, batteries, hydrogen electrolysis, fuel cells, wind energy, carbon capture, medical, consumer electronics, marine, sporting goods, and advanced air mobility (eVTOL). Materials are qualified under ISO 9001 and AS9100 aerospace certifications for use on most commercial aircraft globally and supplied to Fortune 100 and 500 aerospace manufacturers, with 25+ years of defence sector supply. The business has operated in fibre technology and material science for over 175 years under the James Cropper group, founded in 1845.

The company operates a B2B enterprise sales model, selling bespoke, custom-engineered materials directly to large manufacturers through technical sales teams and long-term strategic partnerships. Revenue is generated primarily through one-time sales of advanced materials and coatings alongside co-development agreements and licensing-style partnerships, with quote-based pricing that is not publicly disclosed. The acquisition of PV3 Technologies (January 2021) expanded technical capabilities, and a 2025 strategic partnership with Hoerbiger brought bipolar plate coatings to the fuel cell and electrolyser market.

Name

Technical Fibre Products

Legal name

James Cropper PLC

Website

https://tfpglobal.com

Company type

Public

Founded year

1845

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Technical Fibre Products manufactures advanced wet-laid nonwovens and electrochemical coatings for aerospace, hydrogen electrolysis, fuel cells, automotive, and energy storage applications. Operating as the Advanced Materials division of James Cropper PLC (LSE: CRP), the Kendal, UK-based company supplies bespoke qualified materials to Fortune 100/500 manufacturers worldwide.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Advanced Nonwoven Materials and Electrochemical Coatings

NAICS

Nonwoven Fabric Mills (31323), Fabric Coating Mills (31332), Textile and Fabric Finishing and Fabric Coating Mills (3133)

SIC

Miscellaneous Fabricated Textile Products (2390), Paints, Varnishes, Lacquers, Enamels & Allied Prods (2851)

akta.pro primary industry

Technical Fabric Mills (Performance/Protective/Medical Substrates) (IMAOABAH)

akta.pro secondary industries

Nonwoven Fabric Mills (Spunbond/Meltblown/Needle-punched) (IMAOABAC), Protective & Safety Textiles (FR/Arc/Heat/Cut/Chemical) (IMAOADAA), Coated & Laminated Base Fabric Mills (Pre-finish Substrates) (IMAOABAI)

Keywords

• Wet-laid nonwovens
• Composite materials
• Electrolyser coatings
• Fuel cell materials
• Advanced fibre technology

Headquarters

HQ city

Kendal

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Advanced Materials Product Sales: B2B sales of custom technical nonwoven materials and coatings to aerospace, automotive, energy, and industrial manufacturers. Products include composite solutions, electrolyser coatings, catalysts, and specialty fibres sold as bespoke solutions tailored to customer requirements.
2. Strategic Partnership Development: Long-term strategic partnerships with major customers including co-development agreements and tailored product development for specific system requirements.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Technical Fibre Products (TFP) manufactures wet-laid nonwoven materials and electrochemical coatings sold to industrial customers across aerospace, automotive, energy, and defence sectors. Its product portfolio spans Energy Solutions (electrolyser coatings, catalysts, cell separators, coated electrodes, GDL substrates, bipolar plate coatings) and Composite Solutions (surfacing veils, aligned nonwovens, conductive nonwovens, and functional nonwovens for abrasion, corrosion, EMI shielding, fire protection, static dissipation, and surface finish). Products are supplied as bespoke engineered materials tailored to specific customer and application requirements.

Product overview

James Cropper Advanced Materials (Technical Fibre Products) is a manufacturer of advanced fibre-based materials operating as a single unified product portfolio with two main categories: Energy Solutions and Composite Solutions. Energy Solutions include electrolyser coatings (Resillion™), catalysts (IrO2, IrRuO2, Pt/C), cell separators, coated electrodes, GDL substrates, and bipolar plate coatings for PEM electrolysers and fuel cells. Composite Solutions comprise surfacing veils (SurfaceTec™, Optiveil®), conductive nonwovens (EMITec™), aligned nonwovens (UNIMAT™, VECTIS™), and functional nonwovens for abrasion resistance, corrosion resistance, EMI shielding, fire protection, recycled carbon, static dissipation, and surface finish. The proprietary VECTIS™ technology platform enables industrial-scale aligned fibre production for next-generation composites.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• VECTIS™: Industrial-scale aligned fibre technology platform for next-generation composites
• Resillion™
• SurfaceTec™
• EMITec™
• Optiveil®
• UNIMAT™

Products and services

• VECTIS™ Technology Platform Industrial-scale aligned fibre technology platform for next-generation composites that enables manufacturers to unlock aligned fibre technology at scale.
• Resillion™ Coating Technology Proprietary coating technology for PEM electrolysers that optimises coating and adhesion to complex geometries, protects against corrosion, and improves long-term component performance.
• SurfaceTec™ Surfacing Veils Surfacing veils that deliver exceptional fibre distribution and minimal weight addition (as low as 2 g/m²) with high and even resin wet out for optimised composite production.
• EMITec™ Conductive Nonwovens Conductive nonwovens providing EMI shielding for electronic applications with exceptional flexibility and conformability, uniform fibre distribution, and area weights as low as 4 g/m².
• Optiveil® Carrier Veils Carrier veils designed for adhesive layer applications, enabling easy handling and integration with production processes and consistent bond lines.
• UNIMAT™ Aligned Nonwovens Aligned nonwoven materials for advanced composite applications requiring specific fibre orientation.
• Electrolyser Coatings PTL coatings for PEM electrolysers that optimise coating and adhesion to complex geometries, protect against corrosion, and increase current density.
• Catalysts Anode catalysts (IrO2 and IrRuO2) and cathode catalysts (Pt/C) designed for the manufacture of catalyst coated membranes (CCMs).
• Cell Separators Materials designed for use in energy storage and power generation systems including battery separators.
• Coated Electrodes Coated electrodes for fuel cells and electrolysers providing enhanced efficiency and durability.
• GDL Substrate Gas diffusion layer substrates for fuel cell applications designed to enhance efficiency and durability.
• Bipolar Plate Coatings Coatings that protect bipolar plates (BPPs) against corrosion in fuel cell and electrolyser systems.

Quantifiable outcome

• Products in use on most commercial aircraft globally
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments13 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature9 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• HoerbigercoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 31 March 2025James Cropper and Hoerbiger launched a high-performance drop-in bipolar plate coating solution. The partnership combines James Cropper's Resillion coating technology with Hoerbiger's bipolar plate manufacturing expertise to deliver improved corrosion protection and performance for fuel cell and electrolyser applications.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Freudenberg Performance Materials: Global producer of technical textiles and nonwovens for automotive, construction, and energy applications. Comparable business model, scale, and end-market mix to TFP, particularly in automotive composites and industrial filtration.
• Hollingsworth & Vose: Specialty nonwoven manufacturer producing technical nonwovens for filtration, industrial, and energy applications. Closely comparable to TFP in materials technology, B2B industrial customer base, and product families spanning performance substrates.
• Alkegen (formerly Lydall): Manufacturer of specialty nonwovens and filtration media serving industrial, energy, and transportation markets. Directly comparable to TFP's wet-laid nonwoven process know-how and customer overlap in mobility and industrial applications.
• Ahlstrom: Specialty fibre-based materials manufacturer producing nonwovens and filtration media. Comparable in wet-laid process technology and supply to industrial, energy, and healthcare customers overlapping with TFP's segments.
• Porcher Industries: Specialty technical textiles and nonwovens manufacturer serving aerospace, defence, automotive, and industrial markets. Comparable product portfolio of high-performance nonwovens and direct overlap with TFP in aerospace and industrial composite applications.

Broad incumbents

• Solvay Composite Materials: Major supplier of advanced composite materials and resins for aerospace and industrial markets. Overlaps with TFP in aerospace composite supply chains and increasingly in hydrogen-related materials, but at substantially larger scale and broader portfolio.
• Mitsubishi Chemical Advanced Materials: Diversified advanced materials supplier including composites, carbon fibre, and specialty polymers. Comparable to TFP in advanced composite and carbon-based substrates for aerospace, automotive, and energy transition applications.
• SGL Carbon: Manufacturer of carbon-based materials including carbon fibre, felts, and composites. Comparable to TFP in carbon veil substrates and aligned-fibre composite materials serving aerospace, energy, and industrial markets.
• Toray Advanced Materials: Diversified advanced materials major producing carbon fibre, composites, and nonwoven substrates. Comparable to TFP in carbon fibre veils and aligned-fibre composites for aerospace and automotive, but operates at much larger scale across multiple material categories.
• Teijin Carbon: Producer of carbon fibre and composite materials for aerospace, automotive, and sporting goods. Comparable end-market exposure to TFP, particularly in advanced composite substrates and aligned-fibre applications.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/c/Tfpglobal-TechnicalFibreProducts/videos
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/technical-fibre-products-ltd

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A1 record

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Technical Fibre Products