Special Melted Products, a historic Sheffield metals manufacturer tracing its origins to 1842, is undertaking an ambitious expansion programme to strengthen the UK's domestic aerospace and defence supply chain. The company, currently employing 260 people, plans to construct a new facility incorporating advanced manufacturing equipment including furnaces and a 7,000-tonne press, funded partly through a £2.2m loan from Lloyds. The expansion targets job creation and revenue growth whilst addressing supply chain vulnerabilities.

The investment, dubbed Project Vulcan, reflects a strategic shift toward what company leadership terms "sovereign capability" in advanced materials manufacturing. By reducing dependence on overseas suppliers and building domestic capacity in nickel-based superalloys, the project aims to strengthen both the regional economy and the UK's competitive position in high-value aerospace manufacturing whilst supporting apprenticeships and local supply networks.