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A quick word on timing first. Andy Burnham did not visit us recently, his trip to Ecobelt was back in 2024. What has happened this month is that a prediction made during that visit has finally come true, and it felt like the right moment to look back on it.
On Monday 20 July 2026, HRH King Charles III invited Andy Burnham to form a government. Nearly two years earlier, almost to the day, he had come to Ecobelt on a mayoral visit, and someone who clearly knew what they were talking about turned to him and said: “Andy, you are going to get the keys to the big house in the next few years. Mark my words.” This week that came to pass, and we wish him every success in the job.
For all his talents, one thing defeated him that day: our AnnStuMax™ conveyor belt joint. He gave it 22 mighty strikes and still could not break it. He also left, as most visitors do, genuinely surprised at just how much environmental impact conveyor belts carry.
Even so, he drove a hard bargain. In exchange for us promising not to tap up his beloved Toffees striker, he agreed to help raise awareness of this overlooked problem, and he kept his word. A few months later he made sure Ecobelt had a stand at the GMCA Green Summit, where Professor Michael Shaver also represented us on the main stage.
His backing at mayoral level was only the start of the political momentum behind our work. Our CTO, Craig Spencer-Smith FIMMM, has since worked closely with Caroline Stanton from Business Engagement and Knowledge Exchange at the University of Manchester, the Policy@Manchester team, and a talented group of scientific collaborators, Andy McLauchlin, Nicolás Enrique Labra Cataldo, Jair Esquivel, Raphael R. Z. Tarpani, Michael Shaver, Laurence Stamford and Alejandro Gallego Schmid, together turning an early idea into world class research.
That work has already led to several published papers, with another on the way: “Improved Circularity and Environmental Sustainability of Conveyor Belt Repair and Recycling Strategies.” And after a meeting at the Palace of Westminster with His Excellency Osman Koray Ertaş, Ambassador of the Republic of Türkiye to the UK, conveyor belts are now set to be discussed at COP31 in Antalya, a real step towards recognising their impact on the world stage.
At the heart of all this is AnnStuMax, our patented technology that keeps conveyor belts working for longer through repair, reuse and repurposing. Many of the world’s leading companies are already saving money and cutting waste by working with us, and together we can turn one of the largest hidden waste streams into a genuine circular economy success story.
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