Paint cooling tech is hand picked for Net Zero acceleration programme

A Yorkshire company developing paint cooling technology to tackle global warming has been selected by the UK’s national innovation agency to join a programme accelerating net-zero urban solutions in Singapore.

Harrogate-based Pirta is one of 15 British firms joining the Global Business Innovation Programme (GBIP) Net Zero Singapore 2023, running from June 5 to 9.

Organised by Innovate UK, and delivered by Innovate UK EDGE, GBIP helps ambitious businesses collaborate and expand in new markets.

The international tour includes pitching sessions and meetings with Government officials, key industry players, NGOs and academia.

It will see Pirta pitch to industry professionals at the ‘Towards Net Zero: Advancing Innovations in Green Buildings’ event, organised by the Energy Systems Catapult with the BCA (Building and Construction Authority) as part of the Built Environment Innovation Hub.

Pirta representatives will also attend the inaugural UK-Singapore Business Partnership forum organised jointly by Innovate UK and Enterprise Singapore, alongside the annual sustainability event Ecosperity Week 2023 – Breakthroughs for Net Zero, plus Asia’s flagship tech event Asia Tech x Singapore 2023.

Pirta R&D director Robert Atkin, who will join the GBIP Singapore delegation, said: “There couldn’t be a more appropriate time for Pirta to be visiting Asia.

“In April, Bangladesh, India, Laos and Thailand experienced record-breaking heat waves causing deaths, hospitalisations and widespread damage.

“Severe events like this will only become more frequent, until greenhouse gas emissions are reduced, with experts calling on policymakers to rapidly prepare heat action plans, especially for vulnerable communities.

“This underlines the urgent requirement for new and innovative forms of technology capable of bridging the Net Zero gap.”

He explained how Pirta’s paint formulation allows a surface to lose more heat than it absorbs from the sun, cooling it down to below ambient temperatures.

This brings major environmental benefits by reducing over-reliance on energy-dependent cooling systems and slashing carbon emissions.

He said this versatile technology can be adopted by multiple billion-dollar markets – from construction, shipping, logistics, agriculture and energy.

This paint formula has been validated by the University of Leeds following a testing process involving more than 1,000 samples over a two-year period.

In 2021, Singapore released the ‘Green Plan 2030’ to galvanise a ‘whole-of-nation’ movement and advance the national agenda on sustainable development.

It contains concrete targets over the next 10 years, strengthening commitments under the UN’s 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda and Paris Agreement, to achieve long-term net zero aspirations by 2050.

Pirta CEO Scott Fleming said the firm’s ethos and outlook is “perfectly aligned” with Singapore’s Green Plan 2030.

He added: “We’re thrilled to have been selected for GBIP Net Zero Singapore 2023.

“This is an ideal market for our technology and gateway for our expansion plans into Asia, The upcoming delegation allows us to explore opportunities first-hand and forge direct connections with local partners.”

Pirta has received support from Leeds City Region Local Enterprise Partnership, Innovate UK Edge and the Centre for Process Innovation (CPI).