Introducing trubarrier®: A Sustainable Barrier Coating for the Future

20th May 2026 by Hannah Marsden

At Tullis Russell, we have over 50 years of experience in developing specialist coatings. Today, we are challenging our experts to push boundaries as we expand into new industries and markets.

Introducing trubarrier®.

What is it?

trubarrier® is a lightweight, water-based (aqueous) barrier coating that can be applied to paper or board. It provides coated materials with protective properties, delivering moisture and grease resistance.

What are the advantages of this coating?

This lightweight coating enables improved print clarity while maintaining flexibility, enhancing both print quality and handling processes.

Our coating is also industrially compostable and suitable for direct food contact. Odour and taint neutral, it is ideal for a wide range of food and beverage applications.

During the development of this coating, ensuring recyclability was a priority. As a company, we are committed to making a significant impact within the industry while minimising our environmental footprint. By offering a recyclable solution, we support the circular economy and enable our customers to reduce their carbon emissions.

Developed with sustainability in mind, trubarrier® supports a reduction in LDPE plastic usage, helping to minimise plastic waste across the packaging industry.

What does this mean for us and our customers?

The development of trubarrier® marks another step towards our vision of becoming the world’s leading creative and environmentally responsible coating company.

We are committed to producing the highest quality products for years to come. This means continuously evolving-embracing innovative, more sustainable alternatives that deliver for both our customers and the environment.

Through this approach, we aim to inspire our customers to make more sustainable choices. Together, we can shape a more sustainable future for packaging.

Tullis Russell Expands Manufacturing Capabilities Through New Machinery Investment

20th April 2026 by Hannah Marsden

At Tullis Russell, we are committed to delivering the highest quality products. To help us achieve this, we have invested in cutting-edge machinery to improve and optimise our manufacturing processes.

In 2018, we began our latest expansion at our Bollington factory site, which included the installation of a brand-new machine known as Coater 4. The new coating hall covers a total area of 11,050 m² and is located adjacent to our original site, following the demolition of an old warehouse to make way for this new facility. Coater 4 stands independently within the new hall and is three storeys high, combining multiple processes into one machine, including curtain and gravure coating.

We invested £13 million in this new machine and the opportunities it has created have enabled our business to expand and grow into new markets, including flexible packaging.

Coater 4 has expanded our manufacturing capacity and enhanced production efficiency, all while maintaining the exceptional quality we are renowned for.

The machine is designed and built to handle thin films and papers, as well as high-calliper substrates. It applies both aqueous coatings and thick, highly viscous coatings to our papers and boards. The system design features duplex coating, allowing Tullis Russell to coat one layer on the front and one layer on the back, or multiple curtain-coated layers simultaneously on either side, providing maximum flexibility.

These new capabilities have enabled our newest business sector, TRAdvance, to flourish. As a company, we are always looking to evolve, and our latest expansion into dispersion- coated barrier packaging focuses on developing plastic-free, food-safe coatings for customers in the food and beverage industry.
This allows us to support our customers in meeting increasing sustainability demands while maintaining high performance and product integrity.

With these advancements, we are well positioned to continue expanding our capabilities and supporting our customers across a range of evolving markets. This investment provides a strong foundation for the future development of Tullis Russell and we’re optimistic about what lies ahead.

How Employee Ownership Works at Tullis Russell: An Inside Look

24th February 2026 by Hannah Marsden

Last year we celebrated 40 years of being employee owned. Being employee owned is something we’re proud of as a company. We believe it’s what makes our company stand out from our competitors. Its structure and processes are beneficial to everyone-including our customers.

So, what does it mean to be employee owned?

Employee ownership is a business model where employees hold a significant stake in the company they work for, either directly through shares or indirectly through an employee ownership trust. Being an employee-owned business means the company is run for the long-term benefit of its employees, who share in its success and often have a stronger voice in how it operates. This structure helps align business performance with employee engagement, accountability, and shared reward.

How did Tullis Russell become employee owned?

In 1985, the Russell family made the decision to become an employee-owned business, with shares transferred into the ownership of the employees. Today, the shareholding structure consists of 70% owned by employees and 30% held by a trust run by the Russell family, which supports charities, schools and community projects.

What are the benefits of being employee owned?

It benefits both us as a company and our employees. As a company, we benefit in many ways: responsibilities are shared, we have a higher employee-engagement rate, and better long-term decision-making. We have a strong sense of culture and greater resilience when faced with challenges.

Our open-book management allows for democratic decision-making and greater transparency across the business.

Our employees benefit by feeling heard and part of the bigger picture. The structure allows them to build an ownership mindset, take greater responsibility, and develop leadership skills at all levels.

With each employee having a share in the company, this ensures a higher level of commitment from our team and enables quicker, more responsive decision-making for our customers.

How do our employees feel about being employee owned?

Alicia joined us late last year as our new People and Cultures Manager. Here is what she had to say about our EO structure.

“When I joined the business, employee ownership was something I was really curious about, as it was new to me. What stood out quite quickly was how much people care about the bigger picture and about doing the right thing for the long term, not just the short term.

There’s an openness around what’s happening across the business and a genuine effort to share information and ask for views and feedback, which creates a strong sense of involvement and trust, this is evident with both our works committee and employee ownership board.

What I’ve noticed is how collaborative it feels. People are approachable, and there’s a sense of shared responsibility for how the business performs.

For me, it’s motivating in a different way. It’s less about individual targets and more about contributing to something collective, where success benefits everyone. That shared sense of ownership makes you want to do things well and be part of the journey.”

We find the employee ownership structure works well for us and look forward to continuing this way of working for many years to come, building a business that is collaborative, transparent and focused on long-term success.