Sika Liquid Plastics Limited (SLPL) has appointed Frank Whittle Partnership (FWP) to design a new £2.5 million research and development lab at its Lancashire HQ. FWP, based in the North West, is designing the cutting-edge, three-storey facility for SLPL's operation in Preston and is aiming to submit a planning application early in 2012. Sika Liquid Plastics produces a range of roofing systems with contracts in the Middle East, Asia and Europe. 

High-profile projects include Selfridges, the Tate Britain art gallery in London, the NEC Exhibition Centre in Birmingham, Royal Preston Hospital and East Midlands Airport. The state-of-the-art 12,500 sq ft laboratories will become a centre of excellence for new technologies and will be built on land at SLPL’s Miller Street headquarters and involves the partial demolition of an old Victorian weaving shed.

Martin Whittle, partner of FWP, said: "We are working to create a state-of-the-art R&D facility, providing a 21st-Century environment for its team to help the company remain at the forefront of its sector’s technology.”