Penryn-based specialist engineering company, MintMech, has completed a landmark manufacturing project at its new facility on Kernick Industrial Estate. The first offshore wind-specific system of its kind to be manufactured in Cornwall, MintMech designed a bespoke 30-tonne pipe handling system and gantry crane to support new offshore wind projects.
The completed system is now bound for offshore deployment, where it will be used in upcoming geotechnical drilling operations essential for offshore wind turbine foundations.
“From the very first design drafts to the final welds of the build, the whole process was carried out in Cornwall,” said MintMech co-founder, Laurie Thornton. “Using our network of top-quality Cornish businesses and tradespeople, most of the work happened within eight miles of our new Penryn facility,
“It’s fantastic to see what MintMech is doing with Cornish talent,” said Jayne Kirkham, MP for Truro and Falmouth. “Cornwall has huge potential for harnessing offshore wind, and this project shows that the county can deliver the high-skill, high-value work all too often outsourced elsewhere in the UK or overseas.”
For Thornton, the project carries more than technical significance. “Standing at the top of the pipe handling system’s tower after the build, I could see my old renewable energy lab at the University of Exeter’s Tremough campus,” he said. “Now, with local people on the tools and the wealth staying in the county, we’re showing what’s possible when we invest in homegrown skills.”
“I was at Global Offshore Wind in June, and everyone’s talking about supply chain localisation,” added MintMech commercial manager, Theo Cleave. “This is what it looks like. It’s not just big contracts moving money between big companies; it’s work that enables professional, high skilled jobs for people in Cornwall.”
Our new manufacturing facility will support the next wave of offshore infrastructure, particularly as floating wind in the Celtic Sea moves forward, with new leases recently announced by the Crown.
“Cornwall has always had a knack for industry,” concluded Cleave. “We’re just picking up the baton and making sure it leads somewhere better for the next generation.”
MintMech is a specialist engineering company creating custom, automated solutions for the offshore wind and marine construction industry. For career opportunities visit www.mintmech.com/careers.
