Portfolio company Dekiln has entered into a collaboration with Johnson Tiles, one of the UK’s leading designers and suppliers of ceramic and porcelain tiles.
The two companies have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to form a strategic partnership focused on the scale-up, manufacture and commercialisation of Dekiln’s kiln-free, low-energy bio-based materials as ceramic alternatives. Frontier IP holds a 24.8 per cent equity stake in the Company.
The aim of the partnership is to accelerate commercialisation of Dekiln’s proprietary processes and materials in the UK and beyond by combining them with Johnson Tiles’ manufacturing expertise, market access and sector leadership. As part of any partnership, Johnson Tiles will support Dekiln in establishing a pilot or demonstration manufacturing plant. This will be based in Stoke-on-Trent, the historic heart of the British ceramics industry.
Working with Dekiln aligns with Johnson Tiles’ strong commitment to sustainability. Dekiln’s tiles have a carbon footprint 94 per cent lower than conventional tiles, whilst containing more than 95 per cent recycled content.
The Company’s technology creates ceramic-like composite materials by combining plant-derived binders with waste mineral powders, such as recycled gypsum plaster. The materials look, feel and have similar properties to ceramics, but do not need to be fired or glazed at high temperatures, avoiding the energy intensive kilns used to produce traditional ceramics.
The collaboration also aligns with The Royal Academy of Engineering’s award of a Green Future Fellowship to Dekiln founder and chief executive officer Dr Aled Roberts, which came with £3 million of funding to benefit the Company, as announced by Frontier IP on 18 December 2025.
Jason Bridges, Procurement Director, Johnson Tiles, said:
Johnson Tiles are really excited to be forming this partnership with Dekiln and look forward to adding our technical expertise and market knowledge to ensure this unique concept reaches it’s potential in the marketplace. Aled’s fresh thinking on solving the recycling of waste alongside removing the sintering process to create a product with all the performance and aesthetic qualities of traditional tiles without the embodied carbon is a real game-changer and a concept that aligns perfectly with Johnson Tiles’ sustainable thinking.
Dr Aled Roberts, Chief Executive Officer, Dekiln, said:
This partnership marks an important milestone for Dekiln as we transition from the laboratory to industrial scale manufacturing. Johnson Tiles’ technical expertise, market reach and sustainability focus makes them an ideal partner to support our ambition to scale-up and commercialise our technology.
Neil Crabb, Chief Executive Officer, Frontier IP, said:
Dekiln’s groundbreaking technology has strong potential. Johnson Tiles’ interest in forging a strategic partnership provides further validation of that, following on from Aled’s success in being named as a Green Future Fellow by the Royal Academy of Engineering.