Crown Paints has invested £1m in a new high-speed manufacturing system which is designed to speed up the filling of paint cans by as much as 75%.
The new facility based at Crown's manufacturing site in Hull will use half the amount of water needed to clean paint delivery pipe work and will reduce the usage of electrical power and compressed air by 25%.

Md of Crown Paints, Joe Devitt, said: "As a leader in the UK decorative coatings market, it's essential that we seek to continuously improve our manufacturing and operational efficiencies.

"To meet this challenge, the company established a clear manufacturing strategy and the implementation of this new system at our Hull site is a crucial element of that.

"It's a major investment which will pay huge long-term dividends by helping us to streamline production."

The installation of the high-speed line took almost 12 months to complete and in November last year the first batch of paint came off the line.

The project was headed by engineering manager Steve Collins and involved the installation of new pumps, filters and more than 60m of pipe work.

Mr Devitt added: "The engineering team played a vital role and worked tirelessly to prepare for the new high-speed line.

"The project showcased an extremely high standard of workmanship and even involved members of staff travelling to the Netherlands and Belgium for acceptance testing of the new equipment at the suppliers' premises.

"Such preparation helped make sure everything went to plan and we're delighted to be fully operational so quickly."

The new high-speed line will fill 7.5, 10, 12 and 15 litre size cans.