The firm has opened a new plasterboard manufacturing facility in Bristol, doubling Siniat’s UK production capacity. Building sat down with Bernard Delvaux and John Sinfield to discuss how the factory addresses market demand, the role of recycled materials in plasterboard and the challenges facing UK construction
Etex Group has unveiled its largest-ever investment with the opening of a new plasterboard manufacturing facility in Bristol, UK.
Operating under the Siniat brand, the £170m plant is set to ease supply constraints and strengthen the UK’s construction sector by increasing production capacity.
Strategically located next to the Port of Bristol, the 57,000m² facility aims to reduce transport emissions by cutting the need for imports.
This expansion comes at a critical time, with material shortages continuing to impact the industry. These limitations to supply are due to be increasingly tested in 2025 with the government’s National Planning Policy Framework set to drive housebuilding activity.
John Sinfield, country manager UK & Ireland at Siniat, highlighted the significance of the plant’s capacity.
He said: “The plasterboard market has been capacity constrained for a number of years. What we’ve got now is plenty of capacity to service the demand of the market.”
A core focus for Etex is increasing the use of recycled materials in its plasterboard production.
Bernard Delvaux, chief executive at Etex Group, explained that Siniat’s products in the UK already contain between 30% and 40% recycled gypsum, with an ambition to reach 100%. He stressed that there is also a business case for increasing recycled content in building materials.
He said: “It’s not that it costs more”.
Sinfield echoed this commitment, pointing out that Siniat already uses higher levels of waste gypsum than any other UK supplier.
He said: “Here in Bristol, it’s 30% with an aspiration to move even further. At our Ferrybridge facility, it’s 45%, and 40% across the board for some products. That, again, helps to drive circularity.”
The factory also incorporates sustainability features such as rainwater harvesting, which is expected to save up to 1.7m litres annually. While the site has been designed with installation points for solar panels and electric vehicle charging stations, Etex has not yet confirmed a timeline for their implementation.
Reflecting on the construction industry’s evolution, Delvaux noted: “We are still using the same procedures and the same ways of building as 50 years ago and that’s because the construction industry is extremely fragmented.”
He emphasised the need for innovation and customer-centric solutions to drive progress.
The Bristol plant exemplifies Etex’s strategy to integrate advanced technologies into its operations. Sinfield mentioned the implementation of sensors and plans to utilise artificial intelligence for predictive maintenance, underscoring the company’s commitment to modernising manufacturing processes.
Etex sees offsite construction as a key solution to one of the industry’s most pressing challenges: the skills shortage. Sinfield pointed out that a significant portion of the construction workforce is approaching retirement, with too few new workers entering the industry.
He said: “When you look at the lack of skills and the demand for higher efficiency, one of the solutions has to be offsite manufacturing.”
Despite economic and political uncertainty, Sinfield remains optimistic about the future of the UK construction sector.
He said: “I consider every challenge an opportunity. If something needs to be fixed, we get to figure out how to do it. We have a new government. They clearly want to build and use construction to drive economic growth. If the right policies are put in place, the industry can mobilise and deliver growth quickly.”
However, he acknowledged that global and financial pressures could delay progress, saying: “I think it will be 12-18 months of bumpiness, but then we’ll see the industry begin to mobilise. For us, it’s about investing ahead of the curve for 2026 and beyond when things begin to motor.”
As the UK construction industry looks to the future, Etex’s investment in Bristol positions the company to meet growing demand, integrate technological advancements and push for greater circularity in plasterboard production.
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