Official ceremony to celebrate opening of construction in Wigton – the future home of Guardian^™

9 December 2014

Wigton, England - The new bridge over the Black Beck provided the perfect backdrop for the formal opening of construction of Innovia Security’s new United Kingdom production plant. The new facility, dubbed ‘The future home of Guardian^™’, will produce the polymer substrate which will be used for the next generation of £5 and £10 banknotes, featuring Sir Winston Churchill and Jane Austen respectively.

The new UK plant, which will be completed in 2016 and create 80 new jobs, is being constructed as part of the Company’s agreement to supply the Bank of England with Guardian^™ substrate for the new polymer banknotes to be launched starting with the £5 in 2016 and the £10 approximately 12 months later.

Individuals attending this event, which included a symbolic “ribbon cutting”, were Innovia Security’s Managing Director, Bernhard Imbach, Innovia Group CEO, David Beeby and the Mayor of Wigton, Joe Cowell.

During his ceremony speech, Bernhard said “A banknote is a nation’s business card. At the end of the day, when people across the United Kingdom hold a £5 or £10 polymer banknote in their hand, we want them to feel proud of the note they are holding. That dream starts here, in this field. And if we can achieve that goal, we will know as an organisation and as a community that we have achieved something worthwhile.”

“We are looking forward to the completion of this our new plant, which will enable the production of secure, durable, and clean currency that people across the British Isles will enjoy using. With the smaller-sized notes being planned, the £5 and £10 Guardian^™ notes will be easier to manage and use,” said Bernhard.

Wigton Mayor Joe Cowell had the honour of cutting the Innovia Security branded ribbon. Prominent branded signage featuring the words ‘Wigton’ and ‘The Future Home of Guardian^™’ was also displayed.

Media interest generated by this event included (click to view):

News & Star – 09 Dec
BBC News – 09 Dec
In-Cumbria – 10 Dec
Cumberland News – 12 Dec
In-Cumbria – 15 Dec
itv News – 15 Dec

For more information:

Pilar Ruperti
Communications Coordinator
CCL Secure
T +61 3 9303 0709
E PRuperti@cclsecure.com