10th December 2010

PPS Glass Fibre wins six-figure R&D and supply contract

Aberdeenshire-based glass fibre product manufacturer, PPS Glass Fibre, has won a six figure contract for the research, development, manufacture and supply of riser anti-roll chocks to Stena Drilling for use on four of their drill ships.

The chocks, which PPS Glass Fibre manufactured using glass fibre, are safety mechanisms which will prevent risers from moving about and potentially being damaged or causing damage onboard.

Lesley Paterson, managing director of PPS Glass Fibre, said: “we were delighted to be approached by Stena Drilling to create the glass fibre chocks as it was a fresh challenge for us. We have a long-standing relationship with Stena Drilling having manufactured several products specifically for them in the past like fibre glass storage boxes and ramps but this would have been the biggest project to date.

“The manufacture of the chocks involved several months of research and development before a perfect weight and strength were captured. The finished product is lightweight yet robust at a weight of 25 kilos allowing for effective man handling in an offshore environment.

“Once the initial eight chocks were deemed a success, after several months of in-house and external/independent testing, Stena Drilling came back to us with an order for 330 more chocks, which will be used on all of their ships. It has been a hugely successful experience for everyone involved and we look forward to working with Stena Drilling again in future,” she continued.

A spokesman from, Stena Drilling said: “We chose PPS based previous experiences with them. They are consistent in their excellent customer service, attention to detail, and deadlines, as well as always turning out the exact product we were hoping for.

“In this case they certainly surpassed all expectations; the whole process took only five months from our initial meeting, through a successful certification process, to delivery. We now have the chocks on board our ships giving the required support,” he continued.

PPS Glass Fibre Limited, based in Inverurie, Aberdeenshire, offer specialist services in the manufacture, refurbishment and repair of an extensive range of glass reinforced plastic (GRP) products.

PPS Glass Fibre manufactures a full range of GRP products to suit all applications including offshore oil and gas installation, local councils, water authorities and building and electrical contractors among others. The family-run company employs 16 people and was established in 1978.