Leamington Spa business wins national innovation award as US office opens

Leamington Spa based advanced materials company HTMS Composites has won a national innovation award in the same week it officially opened its Silicon Valley office.

Richard Grainger and Scotty Whitelaw from HTMS winning the award | HTMS composites

placeholder image — Richard Grainger and Scotty Whitelaw from HTMS winning the award | HTMS composites

HTMS, which also has manufacturing operations in Malmesbury, won the Innovation in Materials Award at the Composites UK Industry Awards 2026. The award recognises the company’s development of Inorganic Matrix Composites (IMCs), lightweight, heat-resistant materials with potential applications across automotive, aerospace and industrial manufacturing.

The award comes as HTMS continues to expand internationally. Since announcing plans for its Silicon Valley office in September, the company officially opened the operation last week and is now exporting its materials to the US, alongside existing markets in Japan and Europe. Revenue has grown fourfold over the past two years, and the workforce has grown from five to twelve employees over the past 18 months.

HTMS’s materials can withstand temperatures above 1,000°C and are designed to offer a lighter, more cost-effective alternative to conventional high-temperature materials, including ceramic matrix composites.

Danilo Di Salvo, CEO and co-founder of HTMS Composites, said: “It’s been quite a week for HTMS! Opening our Silicon Valley office and winning this award are two important milestones for a business that started out in a garage.

“We’ve spent years developing a material that can solve real engineering challenges, and we’re now seeing that work translate into international demand. This award is recognition of the whole team and everything they’ve put into building the business and getting us to where we are today.”

Richard Grainger, CTO and co-founder of HTMS Composites, said: “Engineers working with high temperatures have traditionally had to make compromises between performance, weight and cost. Our aim was to develop a material that could overcome those limitations without the complexity and expense associated with conventional ceramic composites.

“We’ve spent years testing, developing and refining these materials, so to have that work recognised by our own industry means a great deal. It’s incredibly rewarding to see how far the technology has come, and even more exciting to see where it could go next.”