P2i

P2i is a British nanotechnology development company focused on surface treatments that add liquid repellency and other functional properties to manufactured products. The company was established in 2004 to commercialize research originating from the United Kingdom’s Defence Science and Technology Laboratory, or DSTL, and was created as a technology spin-out managed by Ploughshare Innovations, DSTL’s technology-transfer organization. Its technology is based on research associated with Stephen Coulson and Jas Pal Badyal at Durham University, with the original development objective of protecting clothing from water and other liquids without sacrificing comfort or breathability. P2i’s core process uses pulsed plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition. In broad terms, a coating precursor is introduced as a vapor and ionized under low-pressure conditions, allowing a very thin polymerized layer to bond to exposed surfaces. The treatment lowers surface energy, causing many liquids to bead rather than spread, penetrate, or be absorbed. Because the process operates at relatively mild temperatures and pressures, it can be used on a wide range of materials and on complex three-dimensional objects. The coating can reach internal and external surfaces, while its thinness is intended to preserve the appearance, hand feel, and vapor permeability of treated products. The company has developed applications across electronics, lifestyle goods, life sciences, filtration and energy, and military and institutional products. In consumer markets, its ion-mask technology was associated with liquid-repellent treatment for footwear, outdoor clothing, gloves, headwear, and related accessories. The technology was used in products associated with footwear and equipment brands including Timberland, Nike, Adidas Golf, Hi-Tec, Magnum Boots, Van Dal, Teva, and K-Swiss. These arrangements positioned P2i primarily as an enabling-technology supplier rather than a conventional consumer brand selling finished goods directly. P2i expanded its capabilities in 2010 through the acquisition of Surface Innovations Limited, a United Kingdom technology company with patent families covering functional nano-coatings. The transaction added technologies associated with antimicrobial resistance, super-hydrophilic or highly wettable surfaces, and protein resistance. P2i subsequently applied its platform particularly broadly in electronics, where its treatments have been used in mobile devices and hearing aids. The company has described its coatings as being used on a substantial share of the world’s hearing devices, although the precise basis and date of that claim are not established in the supplied sources. P2i has also worked with electronics manufacturers, including Motorola and Huawei, and has pursued partnerships with other major Asian device producers. In 2013, it renamed its traditional hydrophobic coating technology from Aridion to Splash-proof, a more accessible description aimed at communicating the treatment’s consumer-electronics benefit. By 2019, the company stated that its available production capacity could treat more than half a billion phones, illustrating the scale it sought through integration with high-volume electronics manufacturing. The company’s international footprint has included a processing facility in the United States, offices in Shenzhen and Taipei, and representation in South Korea. By February 2016, P2i reported that hundreds of its coating systems had been deployed globally, including at manufacturing sites in Brazil, Argentina, the United States, China, India, Japan, Switzerland, Germany, and the United Kingdom. P2i’s business model is therefore centered on licensing, supplying, and implementing coating systems and processes with manufacturers across several industries. Current ownership, leadership, financial performance, and corporate website information are not established by the supplied reference material.

P2i emerged from United Kingdom defense and academic research into protective surface treatments. Research by Stephen Coulson and Jas Pal Badyal at Durham University contributed to a process initially supported by the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory. The original research objective was to make clothing more resistant to water and other liquids while retaining comfort and useful breathability. Rather than forming a thick conventional finish, the approach used plasma processing to create a very thin polymer layer on exposed surfaces. P2i Ltd was established as an independent company in 2004. It was the first DSTL technology spin-out managed by Ploughshare Innovations, the laboratory’s technology-transfer company. The new company’s role was to move the underlying coating research from defense-oriented development toward commercial manufacturing applications. Its process used pulsed plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition at low pressure and room temperature or similarly mild conditions. The vapor-phase method was designed to treat complex objects and materials, including both external and internal surfaces, while preserving the original visual and tactile properties of the treated article. The company initially built its commercial identity around liquid-repellent treatments. Its ion-mask brand was used for lifestyle applications such as footwear, outdoor clothing, gloves, headwear, and accessories. P2i supplied or enabled treatments used in products connected with brands including Timberland, Nike, Adidas Golf, Hi-Tec, Magnum Boots, Van Dal, Teva, and K-Swiss. This activity established P2i as a business-to-business technology provider whose coatings could be incorporated into products sold under other companies’ brands. On 13 July 2010, P2i announced the acquisition of Surface Innovations Limited. The acquired company brought additional functional coating technologies and patent families, broadening P2i beyond simple water repellency. The added capabilities included antimicrobial resistance, super-hydrophilic or liquid-attracting surfaces, and protein resistance. This expansion supported potential applications in life sciences, filtration, energy, and other industrial areas where controlled interaction between a surface and a liquid is important. P2i also developed a substantial electronics presence. Its coatings were applied in the hearing-aid industry and were promoted for protection against moisture and liquid exposure. The company worked with smartphone manufacturers including Motorola and Huawei and with other device manufacturers, particularly in China and the wider Asian electronics market. In 2013, P2i changed the name of its conventional hydrophobic layer technology from Aridion to Splash-proof, using terminology that more directly communicated the intended benefit to electronics manufacturers and consumers. By 2019, P2i stated that its capacity could accommodate treatment of more than 500 million phones. International deployment became an important part of the company’s operating model. P2i had a United Kingdom headquarters, a processing facility in the United States, offices in Shenzhen and Taipei, and representation in Korea. A February 2016 company account cited hundreds of deployed nano-coating systems worldwide, with installations or factory activity reported in Brazil, Argentina, the United States, China, India, Japan, Switzerland, Germany, and the United Kingdom. P2i’s documented history therefore reflects a progression from defense-funded research and specialist textile protection to a broader industrial surface-treatment platform. Its business has covered consumer products, electronics, medical and life-science applications, filtration and energy, and military or institutional equipment. The supplied sources do not establish later ownership changes, named current executives, financial results, or a definitive corporate website, so those aspects remain undocumented here.

• 2019

  Large-scale smartphone treatment capacity reported

  [1]P2ien.wikipedia.org

  P2i stated that its capacity was sufficient to treat more than half a billion phones.

• 2016

  Global deployment reported

  [1]P2ien.wikipedia.org

  P2i reported that hundreds of its nano-coating systems had been deployed at manufacturing facilities in multiple countries.

• 2013

  Aridion renamed Splash-proof

  [1]P2ien.wikipedia.org

  The company rebranded its traditional hydrophobic coating technology as Splash-proof.

• 2010

  Acquisition of Surface Innovations

  [1]P2ien.wikipedia.org

  P2i acquired Surface Innovations Limited, expanding its technology portfolio into antimicrobial, super-hydrophilic, and protein-resistant functional coatings.

• 2004

  P2i established as a DSTL technology spin-out

  [1]P2ien.wikipedia.org

  P2i Ltd was formed as a stand-alone company to commercialize coating research developed with support from the United Kingdom’s Defence Science and Technology Laboratory.

An industrial nanotechnology and surface-engineering partner that enables manufacturers to add liquid repellency and other functional properties to products without materially changing their appearance, feel, or breathability.

• Lifestyle and outdoor liquid-repellent coating

  ion-mask

  ion-mask was P2i’s consumer-facing technology brand for liquid-repellent treatment of footwear, outdoor clothing, gloves, headwear, and related accessories. The coating was incorporated into products associated with several international footwear and equipment companies. Its purpose was to reduce liquid absorption while maintaining the original appearance, feel, and practical performance of the treated material.

• Consumer-electronics protection coating · 2013

  Splash-proof

  Splash-proof was the name adopted in 2013 for P2i’s conventional hydrophobic coating technology, previously called Aridion. It was positioned for electronics applications where resistance to moisture and incidental liquid exposure could improve product durability. P2i’s electronics work included smartphones and hearing devices, with manufacturing partnerships reported across major international and Asian electronics markets.

• Industrial coating technology and equipment · 2004

  P2i plasma nano-coating systems

  P2i’s core industrial offering uses pulsed plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition to apply an extremely thin polymer coating to product surfaces. The low-pressure, mild-temperature process can treat complex three-dimensional objects and a variety of materials. Depending on the formulation, the platform can provide liquid repellency or other functional properties while limiting changes to a product’s appearance, tactile characteristics, and fabric breathability.

• 2013

  Rename Aridion as Splash-proofStrategy

  Background

  P2i had used Aridion for its established hydrophobic coating technology, including applications in electronics.

  Action taken

  The company changed the technology’s name to Splash-proof.

  Aftermath

  The new name presented the liquid-protection benefit in more immediately understandable language for electronics and consumer-product markets.

  Source

• 2010

  Broaden the technology portfolio through Surface Innovations acquisitionM&A

  Background

  P2i sought to extend its original liquid-repellent platform into additional surface-engineering applications.

  Action taken

  The company acquired Surface Innovations Limited and incorporated its functional nano-coating technologies and patent families.

  Aftermath

  The transaction expanded P2i’s stated application scope to antimicrobial, super-hydrophilic, and protein-resistant coatings, alongside its existing hydrophobic treatments.

  Source

1. 1P2ien.wikipedia.org